North Korean officials berate their economic performance in state media

March 9 (UPI) -- Senior North Korean officials in charge of the economy are engaging in self-criticism in a new section of a state newspaper that reflects the official view of Kim Jong Un.

Korean Workers' Party newspaper Rodong Sinmun has created a section called "Ground-level Podium," or platform, South Korean news agency Yonhap reported.

An article published Tuesday featured statements from North Korean cabinet officials and chiefs of state industry, included remarks from Jo Yong Dok, a department director of the North Korean cabinet.

Jo said in the article that the lack of joint action has hindered progress.

"There were a number of problems last year in the area of cooperation between the metals industry and the coal industry, the coal industry and rail transport, that need to be corrected," Jo said.

"Production was hindered due to poor cooperation between the country's major economic sectors, including metals, electricity, coal industry and rail transport."

The North Korean official also was quoted as saying the workforce must make a "breakthrough" and prepare for a "complete departure from a bad work ethic" and the "old-fashioned" way of doing things.

State failures are being mentioned in the party paper a week after Kim criticized his subordinates for "deeply rooted bluff." Kim also said during the Eighth Party Congress in January that the Five-Year Plan established in 2016 was a failure.

The performance of North Korea's state-run enterprises is being mentioned amid informal marketization in the country.

Marketization has included the rise in clandestine consumption of South Korean media. Pyongyang has enforced a crackdown against the South's media with calls for a "struggle against anti-socialist forces," South Korean news service Seoul Pyongyang News reported Tuesday.

On Tuesday, North Korean propaganda service Uriminzokkiri denounced the South Korean dialect as "polluted" and a symbol of the loss of heritage.

Past reports indicate North Koreans quote lines from popular South Korean television dramas, prompting state investigations.