- All 4 core investigation and safety agency heads operating under acting chiefs... unprecedented administrative vacuum in constitutional history
- National Police Agency chief vacant for 1 year and 8 months since December 2024... Prosecution, Fire, and Coast Guard also vacant in succession
- Relying on acting systems including Koo Ja-hyun, Yoo Jae-sung, and Jang In-sik... 'limits' to responsible crisis response
- Outpouring of criticism online asking "What is the reason for the appointment delay?"... controversy over government dereliction of duty jeopardizing public safety
An unprecedented long-term crisis where the top positions of the four core agencies responsible for national security and disaster safety (the Prosecutors' Office, National Police Agency, National Fire Agency, and Korea Coast Guard) are simultaneously vacant is prolonged. As the absence of control towers continues due to the current administration's incomprehensible delays in personnel appointments, public criticism is spreading that a serious hole has been punched in the national crisis response system.
According to various online communities and major portal information on the 16th, all four major investigation and safety agency heads are currently operating under acting chief systems. In the case of the National Police Agency, where the situation is most severe, it has been running under the acting system of Yoo Jae-sung without a chief since December 2024. Following this, the Prosecutors' Office has had Koo Ja-hyun as acting chief since July 2025, and the National Fire Agency and Korea Coast Guard have also left their chief positions vacant since September and December 2025, respectively, with the Coast Guard barely managing duties through acting chief Jang In-sik.
It is an abnormal administrative paralysis that the heads of the four agencies directly linked to the lives of citizens have been simultaneously vacant for a long period of up to over a year. On online communities, timelines of the vacant agency heads are being shared, accompanied by harsh criticisms such as "Isn't the Lee Jae-myung government intentionally delaying appointments?" and "Dereliction of duty on the level of a fake government."
The problem is that the absence of chiefs immediately leads to a decline in organizational control and the complete suspension of mid- to long-term policy formulation. In the event of unexpected national crises such as large-scale disasters or major crimes, there are clear limitations for an acting system with restricted authority to make prompt and responsible decisions. Pointing out is rising that the President's Office urgently needs to finalize personnel selections swiftly to normalize state administration and secure public safety.