Ex-Science Minister Grilled over Land Sale

Former Science and Technology Minister Park Ho-goon was questioned yesterday on the alleged preferential sale of land under the Digital Media City building, or DMC.

Park was a Seoul City Hall official in charge of deliberation and judgment on the DMC project between 2002 and 2003, before being named the first science minister of the Roh Moo-hyun administration.

The independent counsel team asked Park on if preferential treatment was involved in the land’s purchase by Korean German Industrial Park in 2003.

The team plans to launch a further investigation into the city’s DMC planning committee, which made the final decision on the project.

Most of the 20 committee members eventually went on to serve in key positions under the Kim Dae-jung and Roh administrations, including Park, former Science and Technology Minister Kim Woo-sik, former Information and Communication Minister Chin Dae-je and Uri Party lawmaker Hong Chang-seon.

As the scope of investigation expands to cover ruling party figures who were involved in the project, let alone those of President-elect Lee Myung-bak, prosecutors could pursue the conservative Grand National Party’s allegation that leading liberal lawmakers Chung Dong-young and Han Hwa-kap took part as charter committee members and aided the industrial park.

Also questioned was a professor who was on a 15-member task force under the planning committee in charge of in-depth revision of the DMC project. The members comprised 15 experts in fields such as academia and accounting.

In addition, prosecutors summoned Kim Kyung-jun, the central figure in the BBK stock fraud scandal, for the third time and grilled him on if he was pressured or bribed to stay silent on President-elect Lee’s alleged role.

“Because Kim insists he made false statements because of threat and bribe offers by prosecutors, we are looking into this part first,” said a source with the independent counsel team.

bell@donga.com