South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said Wednesday that he is determined to make a "fresh start" following collective resignation offers by his Cabinet ministers and senior secretaries over the past week.
Lee also said he felt relieved to see Tuesday night's massive street rallies in protest of the U.S. beef import deal end peacefully.
"I had a lot of mixed feelings watching last night's street rallies. I myself participated in pro-democracy activities as a student in the past," said Lee while meeting with representatives of small and medium-sized enterprises at the presidential office.
"I'm determined to make a fresh start. Let's pursue aggressive challenges in these difficult times," said Lee, indicating an intention to conduct a sweeping shakeup of his Cabinet and secretariat.
On Tuesday, Prime Minister Han Seung-soo and the entire South Korean cabinet offered to resign to take responsibility for the intensifying political turmoil triggered by the government's much-criticized decision in mid-April to unconditionally lift a ban on U.S. beef imports.
The unprecedented collective resignation offer by the fledgling cabinet, which was inaugurated slightly over three months ago, came hours before a record 80,000 people held street rallies in the center of Seoul to protest the Lee administration's U.S. beef import deal and other reform policies.
Last Friday, all eight senior secretaries to President Lee, including presidential chief of staff Yu Woo-ik, offered to resignen masse, holding themselves responsible for the escalating dispute over the controversial beef deal.
At the meeting, Lee also expressed concern about a possible vacuum in administrative affairs in the wake of the collective resignation offers by top government officials.
"I instructed the Cabinet and senior presidential secretaries to make sure that there will be no vacuum in the administration. I think the ongoing crisis can be overcome if the people, enterprises, laborers, government and political circles are all united."
Source:Xinhua
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