[Editorial] Only Personal Corruption to Kang Geum-won?

The prosecution has requested a warrant on Kang Geum-won, president of Changshin Textiles, for his personal corruption of alleged misfeasance and tax evasion but has excluded Kang from the charges of giving money to the close aides of the president or funding President Roh’s camp during the presidential election. Since there is a part missing which connects Kang to President Roh or his close aides, it will not be easy to clear the doubt that the investigation is using this as a way to appease the press with its flimsiness.

The prosecution has to find the nuts and bolts about where Kang has used the five billion won out of the company’s fund. Kang has said that “he has helped the president beyond the level that anyone could possibly imagine.” Therefore, it is of utmost emergency to clarify how he has helped the president and with what kind of money. If it is only Lee Ki-myeong and Seon Bong-sul that Kang has given money to among the close aides, then what does “help beyond anyone’s imagination” refer to?

Kang has been raising his voice recently, claiming that he is the “chairman of the leading opposition party within the regime.” However, if the allegations that the prosecution is investigating are revealed to be true, he cannot avoid the condemnation that he approached the new regime in order to cover up his corruption and also to stimulate his business.

Kang has also said, “Many people will find themselves in difficult situations once I start to talk,” and has publicly said that he was directly involved in the personnel management at the Blue House. There should be some special reasons why he acted so snobbishly that he earned the nickname, “Little President" while being just as an owner of a small company. People will not just simply understand it as a “personal corruption.”

President Roh has vetoed the special investigation bill that was passed by the National Assembly, but his cause to veto the bill has been weakened further by the revealed corruption of Kang. It is even questionable as to whether the prosecution would have gone far to request a warrant on Kang, who has been a sponsor of the president for a long time, if there were no pressure from opposition parties.

The investigation by the prosecution starts from this point forward. The prosecution has to find every small detail regarding who has received and how much of money from Kang, for what purposes have they used it for, and how these issues are related to Kang’s personal corruption.