Reports: SKorea's prime minister offers to resign

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea's prime minister has offered to resign for failing to get parliamentary approval to scrap the planned relocation of government offices out of Seoul, news reports said Monday. Prime Minster Chung Un-chan expressed his intention to step down during a private meeting with President Lee Myung-bak on Saturday, the mass-circulation Chosun Ilbo newspaper reported, citing an unidentified government official. In response, Lee asked Chung, an academic who was appointed in September, to "carefully" decide upon his resignation, the paper said. Major South Korean media outlets including the Dong-a Ilbo newspaper carried similar reports. Both the presidential Blue House and the prime minister's office said they could not confirm Chung's reported resignation offer. The post of prime minister is largely ceremonial with little decision-making power, but the person holding the position leads the country if the president becomes incapacitated. Chung had led Lee's efforts to spike the previous government's plan to relocate more than half of 15 government ministries in Seoul and a nearby city to a site, about 100 miles (160 kilometers) to the south, citing possible inefficiency and waste of taxpayer money. The National Assembly, however, voted down Lee's push last week, forcing him to start work on implementing the original plan that proponents say would help foster balanced regional development and resolve Seoul's worsening traffic and housing problems. The vote was a blow to Lee, who has been reeling from a surprise defeat last month in nationwide mayoral and gubernatorial elections seen as a test of public sentiment toward his handling of the sinking of a warship blamed on North Korea. Lee's government has taken a slew of punitive measures against North Korea for allegedly torpedoing the South Korean warship Cheonan in late March, killing 46 sailors. The North denies the allegation and has warned any punishment would trigger war. After the election defeat, Lee said he would reshuffle top advisers and Cabinet members but did not say when or how many officials he would replace. The Chosun Ilbo said Lee plans to start the personnel shake-up with the overhauling of the Blue House as early as this week. — AP