Mr. Critic`s resignation

Chairman Park Yong-sung of Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction is nicknamed “Mr. Critic.” During the Roh Moo-hyun administration, he criticized the government, calling “Korea a NATO (No Action Talks Only) state, where cheap talks prevail and no actions are taken. Park blasted the labor community by saying “The law of collective stubborn claims in which (unionized people) flock en masse to make excessive demands,” and calling the political circle a “third-grade group that lacks capacity to coordinate conflict.” He would earn criticism that he only speaks for conglomerates, but many would also complement him by saying he outspokenly makes justifiable critical remarks without reservation that others cannot afford to.”

When Doosan Group took over Chung-Ang University in 2008, Chairman Park was inaugurated as chairman of the school’s board, and would openly state that “I will change everything except the name Chung-Ang University.” In fact, he merged many of departments at the university. “Why do we need the department of social welfare, the department of childhood welfare, and the department of family welfare individually? Then, why there are no department of grandmother welfare and the department of grandfather welfare.” He merged related departments into the college of social welfare. He deprived professors who do not research hard enough of their rooms. In February this year, he announced a ‘plan on advancement of academic structure at the undergraduate school’ that called for outright dismantlement of the department system starting with freshmen in the school year 2016, and require students to seek their future career paths before choosing majors.

There are ample controversies over his college reform drive. Some say that a university is not a vocational academy, but he approaches college education by focusing too much on market principle. Some also criticized that his reform campaign forces out humanities and basic studies. Others say that it is right to dump the ‘selfishness of departments’ centered on professors and move towards a flexible academic structure focused on students. Chung-Ang University said, “What society needs are not humanities majors but people with knowledge in humanities.” Amid abundance of universities that are similar to each other in Korea, it is refreshing to know that a university like Chung-Ang exists here at all.”

However, his verbal mistake is set to put the brakes on his reform drive. He resigned as Chung-Ang University’s board chairman and chairman of Doosan Heavy Industries & Construction on Tuesday, because he reportedly sent appointed professors an email, reading “It is wrong to not sack, when they want to be fired. I will sack them in the way that is most painful and causes most blood-shedding” last month, criticizing professors who are opposed to reshuffle of the university’s academic structure, which was made public recently. The more responsible position one has, the more important it is for him or her to use more refined language.

ysshin@donga.com