Roh replaces three ministers.

(From The Korea Herald)

By Seo Hyun-jin Former Uri Party Chairman Chung Dong-young was appointed unification minister and former floor leader Kim Geun-tae was made health and welfare minister in a minor reshuffle of the Cabinet yesterday, heralding the government's accelerated drive for reform and fights against corruption. Uri Rep. Chung Dong-chae was named to head the Culture Ministry as President Roh Moo-hyun put the three leading members of the ruling party into key official posts a day after parliament approved his new Prime Minister Lee Hae-chan.

With the reform-minded politicians, all in their 50s, entering officialdom, the president is expected to embark on a full-fledged effort to implement a host of reform plans that had to be shelved for two months after the previous parliament impeached him in March.

Roh had planned to replace the heads of the three ministries soon after the Constitutional Court reinstated him in mid-May but the reshuffle was delayed when then Prime Minister Goh Kun refused to recommend new ministers before resigning from his post, making the president wait until he had a new premier.

The latest lineup including powerful politicians will enable Roh to put spurs to his much-touted agendas - enervating the government, rooting out corruption and reinvigorating the sagging economy. The appointments of Chung and Kim were widely expected as Roh reportedly wanted to let the presidential hopefuls acquire administrative experience and prevent their rivalry from causing turmoil within the party before the 2007 presidential election. The president also hopes the two heavyweights will tighten the discipline of government officials, political analysts said. Both men openly coveted the top policymaking position on North Korea, which has become highly influential here in the current reconciliatory mood on the divided peninsula. Roh finally gave the popular post to Chung, whose leadership was underscored in the April general elections by Uri tripling its parliamentary seats to become a majority party. A former TV journalist, Chung has enjoyed high popularity, even though he served just two terms in the legislature. He replaces outgoing Unification Minister Jeong Se-hyun. Despite failure to obtain the position he wanted, third-term legislator Kim accepted the leadership role at the Ministry of Health and Welfare to help Roh proceed smoothly with the second phase of his rule after his unprecedented impeachment, Kim's aides said. Kim's supporters had earlier urged him to remain in the party if he could not ...