Is Cheong Wa Dae still one-way street?

Presidential office rapped for short notice on meeting with tycoons

Cheong Wa Dae’s short notice of a meeting between President Moon Jae-in and business tycoons has baffled corporate officials as they don’t have enough time to prepare for it.

The presidential office said Sunday that Moon will meet with the leaders of the country’s top 15 business groups Thursday and Friday, and ask them to create more jobs and share growth with small firms.

The corporations on the invitation list are Samsung, Hyundai Motor, SK, LG, Lotte, POSCO, GS, Hanwha, Hyundai Heavy Industries, Shinsegae, KT, Doosan, Hanjin, CJ and Ottogi.

But the problem is the announcement was made only four days ahead of the meeting, catching the 15 businesses off guard.

They say they need at least two weeks prior notice to adjust their leaders’ schedules, complaining that Cheong Wa Dae should have consulted with them about the schedule and agenda.

The presidential office also didn’t give prior notice to or consult with the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry (KCCI), which has been trying to organize the meeting.

After hosting a gathering of CEOs from 15 groups on July 11, the KCCI made a formal request that Moon meet with business leaders in the near future.

“Neither Cheong Wa Dae nor the KCCI notified us in advance about the President’s meeting with business leaders later this week,” said an executive at one of the country’s top four business groups, who declined to be named. “We are bewildered by the presidential office’s unilateral notice.”

“Our group chairman runs on an extremely tight schedule,” the executive said. “We need to know when the meeting with the President will be held at least two weeks in advance.

“Given such short notice, we are not sure whether the chairman will be able to go to Cheong Wa Dae or not.”

An official at one of the top four conglomerates said the group hasn’t heard anything from the presidential office or the KCCI regarding the upcoming meeting.

“We found out about the meeting via Cheong Wa Dae’s press briefing,” the official said. “We haven’t been consulted by anyone. It feels like businesses must follow orders from the presidential office. As in the past, the upcoming meeting will likely be one-sided, with the President telling business leaders what to do.”

The KCCI also appears puzzled by Cheong Wa Dae’s handling of the matter, saying it faces an extremely tight schedule.

“It is unfortunate that we have only three days to prepare for the biggest event of the year,” a KCCI executive said. “We are rushing to set the meeting agenda and finalize the list of attendees.

“As soon as we heard the news, we began coordinating with the 15 groups for the upcoming meeting. We want the chairman of each group to show up at Cheong Wa Dae, but if that’s not possible, we would like to have the CEOs instead.”

According to the KCCI, Hyundai Motor Chairman Chung Mong-koo, LG Group Chairman Koo Bon-moo, SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won are expected to attend the gathering, while Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Kwon Oh-hyun will meet with President Moon because group heir Lee Jae-yong is currently standing trial.