Bank Sale Probe Looks at Cheong Wa Dae

It was reported on April 30 that the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI), which is currently investigating the speculation over disposal of the Korea Exchange Bank (KEB) at too low a price, summoned former Cheong Wa Dae administrative officer Ju Hyung-hwan on April 29 and is considering investigating Kwon Oh-gyu, the chief presidential secretary for economic affairs who was serving as chief presidential secretary for policy affairs at the time of the KEB disposal.

“By investigating former administrative officer Ju, we were able to make a basic examination on the role of Cheong Wa Dae in the process of the KEB disposal,” said a BAI official on April 30. “In order to confirm some extra facts, we are considering whether to investigate Kwon, the superior of Ju.”

Prior to the investigation into Kwon, the BAI is reportedly planning to investigate Professor Shin Bong-ho of the University of Seoul (UOS), then-presidential secretary for policy coordination and the superior of Ju in Cheong Wa Dae’s Policy Office.

In the investigation on the previous day, former administrative officer Ju was reported to testify that he attended the so-called “emergency meeting of ten people” regarding the KEB disposal as part of his ordinary work, and that he went through ordinary reporting procedures with regard to the results of the meeting.

It was also reported that the BAI would call Lee Gang-won, the president of the Korea Investment Corporation (KIC) and then-president of the KEB, again this week. If it concludes illicit conduct had been made, it would also decide whether it should request the prosecution to make investigations into key people involved, such as former KEB president Lee and Byun Yang-ho, the president of the Vogo Fund and then-director of the financial policy bureau at the Ministry of Finance and Economy (MOFE).

Min-Hyuk Park mhpark@donga.com