Chongwadae remains ripe for fraud

The disclosure by Korea Digital Line president Jung Hyun-Joon, under arrest in the illegal loan scandal through Dongbang Mutual Savings and Finance Co., of having handed over billions of won to an eighth-level sanitation worker at Chongwadae, Lee Yoon-Kyu, with request to stall the Financial Supervisory Service's investigation has sent shockwaves across the nation.

The shocking element in the revelation is not Jung's action but the fact that an eighth-level janitor at Chongwadae could possibly have so much influence and the exact power-base of the so-called people¡¯s government office, Chongwadae. How could such be possible? Why do the scandals involving Chongwadae personnel never cease?

1. A few examples

Jung's case is not an exception. A businessmen asking anonymity disclosed to the ruling Millennium Democratic Party official of a similar experience.

Having a need to meet and discuss with a Chongwadae official, he was introduced to a person at Chongwadae. Over the phone, the Chongwadae personnel asked the businessman to have a car ready for him outside Chongwadae at a specific time. The man in a neat business suit came out of Chongwadae wearing an official pass. However, he was later found to be a technician at the compound.

During former President Ro Tae-Woo's administration, a similar incident took place. A call came from someone at Chongwadae threatening the broadcast studio to "lay-off" on certain individuals. The man left a phone number belonging indeed to Chongwadae.

When a supervisory staff member at the broadcast station called the number, the caller answered the phone. However, feeling a bit suspicious, the broadcast station personnel contacted another Chongwadae number to find out that the first number had been to the boiler room at Chongwadae and the receiver was the boiler room technician.

Scandals involving Chongwadae staff abound, as well. To find examples, there is no need to go as far as former administrations. The Pohang Iron and Steel supplier contract scandal in August resulted from an active involvement of an administrator "Kim" at the civil service aides office of Chongwadae. Mr. Kim met with the president of a supplier company to POSCO and received 60 million won in lieu of a promise for Mr. Kim to meet with the president of POSCO Yoo Sang-Boo and extend the contract of the supplier.

Such scandals have become possible due to the misguided understanding by the general public. Many still deeply believe that although the administrations might come and go, Chongwadae itself has the power influence enough to solve all problems.

Although it began with and is a deep-rooted evil side of the past authoritarian government, such conceptions have not had much transformation even during the democratic government. As such, such technical personnel as Lee Yoon-Kyu is able to make use of the name Chongwadae for scandalous self enrichment. The Mr. Kim involved in the POSCO scandal also passed himself off as a director of a bureau at Chongwadae.

2. Non-stop temptations

"When I was assigned to Chongwadae, the news spread like wildfire, and I received a call from a high school buddy who was in the construction industry,¡± a source in Chongwadae said recently. ¡°He offered to give me a monthly allowance for my nights outs, which I had to refuse."

It has been a common practice of "upgrading" one's title outside Chongwadae. Most pass themselves off as the bureau chiefs, department heads or special aides. At times, even though the individual might not actively promote such upgrading, others around them might do so on their own volition. Such are the products of the misconceptions that promote corruption.

3. Causes and their remedy

The fundamental cause lies in the very nature of the political culture of the Korea people of blind obedience to authority, the corrupt nature of certain members in high-ranking positions and the power hold of Chongwadae.

"Through the trickle-down modernization trend in the ¡¯60s and ¡¯70s, Chongwadae has expanded its power reach from its original authority into the administrative, legislative and social spheres and has become an indisputable authority that symbolizes broad power transcending all," the Korean Social Pathological Research Institute Chief Baik Sang-Chang said. "Even with the democratization of the administration and the maturity of the citizen organizations, the old mentality of Chongwadae having influence enough to solve all problems still remains."

Such analysis has been made in previous administrations, but even in the current so called "people's government", the "little government," where authority and organizational curtailment have been enacted, such scandals continue.

Accordingly, many experts have found it necessary to propose additional theory for the causes of such scandals as being the inadequacy of the supervisory personnel, the hiring of recruits through personal recommendations, and the non-transparency in the workings of Chongwadae.

"The excuse that the things were worse in previous administrations is meaningless," one expert said. "Chongwadae needs to keep close tabs on all staff members, from the special aides to technical workers, in order to prevent such temptation to involve themselves in scandalous activities."

Another with experience of having worked at Chongwadae said: "When a recruit comes with a personal-tie recommendation, the supervisory personnel loses its full functional ability to keep tabs on such a person and risks a moral hazard. Other than concerning secret information, Chongwadae needs to publicly have available through the Internet, the names and the particular responsibilities of all of its employees."

Yoon Young-Chan yyc11@donga.com