KOREA - Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan offered to resign over the controversial hiring of his daughter by an office in the ministry, a presidential spokesperson said Saturday.

"He (Yu) expressed his intention to voluntarily step down, feeling sorry for causing public criticism over the matter related to the recent hiring of her daughter," the spokesman told reporters.

President Lee Myung-bak may accept his resignation, one of his aides said.

Lee learned on Saturday morning through presidential chief of staff Yim Tae-hee that Yu, who has been in the post since the beginning of the current administration in February 2008, expressed his intention to resign.

Public criticism has been growing after his daughter, Hyeon-seon, was recruited as the ministry's mid-level director for free trade agreement affairs through a special employment program earlier this week.

She was the only applicant to meet the somewhat loose criteria of an official English-language test score, career papers and passing an interview.

Two of the five people who interviewed the daughter were incumbent ministry officials, triggering speculation that she had been granted special privilege due to her connection with the minister.

During an urgently convened press briefing on Friday, Minister Yu insisted his daughter was recruited fairly, but said he was canceling her employment to "prevent further distress of the public."

President Lee has asked officials to "elaborately investigate details" of the incident.