President Yoon Suk-yeol accepted the resignation of Minister of the Interior and Security Lee Sang-min (pictured) on December 8. Although the People Power Party has promised to remove Yoon from office and arrange an orderly early retirement, Yoon is still exercising his right to personnel appointments.

As long as Yoon remains in office, he is also the commander-in-chief of the military. It has been pointed out that Yoon, who is facing charges of rebellion for declaring martial law, should not be allowed to continue to exercise his personnel powers and military control.

The Ministry of the Interior and Safety said Yoon approved Lee’s dismissal on the same day.

In a statement, Lee said, “I strictly acknowledged my responsibility for not serving the people comfortably and not serving the president well, either, and I apologize to the people,” adding, “I don't think there should be any more vacuum and confusion in state affairs. I will now return to being an ordinary citizen and contribute to a new leap forward for a free Republic of Korea.”

President Yoon's exercise of personnel power has continued since the Dec. 3 emergency martial law incident. On the third day of martial law, which is December 5, he accepted the resignation of Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun and named Choi Byung-hyuk, the country's ambassador to Saudi Arabia, as his successor. On the sixth, he approved the appointment of Park Sun-young as chairperson of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. On the same day, it also confirmed the appointment of Oh Ho-ryong, a former special adviser to the National Intelligence Service chief, to replace Hong Jang-won, former first deputy director of the NIS. Notably, the resignation of Minister Lee came about four hours after the two leaders, Han Dong-hoon, the leader of the People Power Party, and Prime Minister Han Duck-soo, promised to exclude Yoon from office.

After the emergency martial law incident, all members of the cabinet tendered their resignations, but Yoon only accepted the resignations of two of his closest aides, former Defense Minister Kim and Minister Lee. Kim's resignation was interpreted as a move to prevent him from appearing before the National Assembly's defense committee, while Lee's resignation was understood to protect him from impeachment. Minister Lee attended a cabinet meeting prior to the declaration of martial law and has been accused of being a sympathizer with the rebellion. This raises criticism that it was inappropriate for Lee to write in his statement that he would “return to being an ordinary citizen.”

It has been pointed out that the declaration of President Yoon's “exclusion from office” by PPP leader Han and Prime Minister Han was a foregone conclusion because it was not enforceable. The parliamentary impeachment bill was rejected, and Yoon remains in control of the military. In the event of a conflict with North Korea, he has no choice but to exercise his authority.

It is argued that it is dangerous for an alleged insurrectionist who mobilized the military to shut down constitutional institutions to retain his authority as commander-in-chief.

“Suspension of the president’s duty is the only constitutionally prescribed procedure, and any other claim is unconstitutional and an act of continuing the insurgency,” Kim Min-seok, a supreme council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said at a press conference at the National Assembly shortly after Han's speech, adding that Yoon should be stripped of his military command. Kim continued, “The next target of the insurgent forces is the change of phase through wartime martial law and exercising military control. Not six months, but even six seconds is dangerous.”