[Summary] "Swift Investigation" vs "Is It Wrong for Lawmakers' Families to Have Businesses?" Clash Between Ruling and Opposition Over Park Deokheum's Alleged Contracts with Supervised Agencies

Opposition Forms Emergency Investigation Committee on Park Deok-heum's Preferential Contract Awards
Democratic Party Criticizes "Park Deok-heum Should Resign and People Power Party Must Take Responsibility"
Park Deok-heum Claims Innocence, Denies Conflict of Interest

Park Deok-heum, a member of the People Power Party, is attending the Environment and Labor Committee plenary meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 15th. Photo by Yonhap News.

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Su-wan] Intense disputes between the ruling and opposition parties are escalating over allegations that Park Deok-heum, a member of the People Power Party, secured construction contracts worth over 100 billion won from supervised institutions through a construction company registered under his family's name.

The ruling party has called for a thorough and swift investigation into the allegations involving Park, while the opposition has stated, "We need to hear his explanation," and decided to form an emergency fact-finding special committee.

On the morning of the 21st, the People Power Party announced plans to establish an emergency fact-finding special committee within the party regarding the allegations against Park Deok-heum.

Choi Hyung-doo, the party's floor spokesperson, said in a verbal briefing, "The People Power Party has decided to form an emergency fact-finding special committee. This committee will be composed of insiders and outsiders with investigative experience and expertise, including former prosecutors and police officers, as well as experts with policy experience in budget procurement and public contracts," emphasizing, "We plan to quickly uncover the truth and take appropriate measures."

Kim Ki-hyun, a People Power Party lawmaker, appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' that morning, stating, "This situation has only arisen a few days ago," and "There hasn't been enough time to ascertain the facts."

He added, "He said he would clarify his position this afternoon, so we should confirm the facts after hearing that and then discuss the matter," and countered, "No one is a god who can suddenly determine the truth within a few days."

Additionally, Kim refuted the allegations against Park, saying, "There is no law prohibiting Park Deok-heum's family from conducting business," and "They have the freedom to engage in economic activities. If we say that the families of lawmakers should not engage in any economic activities, it's not like lawmakers have to support them all."

Park Soo-young, another member of the same party, appeared on YTN Radio's 'Starting New Morning' and said, "This should be handled in the same way as the case of Kim Hong-gul from the Democratic Party," adding, "He said he would explain himself this afternoon. If that is sufficient, then it's fine; if not, our party's Ethics Committee should investigate."

She continued, "The urgent priority is to determine what is true and what is false," emphasizing, "Just because the media raises suspicions doesn't mean everything is a fact."

Choi In-ho, the chief spokesperson of the Democratic Party of Korea, is briefing the results of the high-level party-government meeting at the National Assembly Communication Office in Yeouido, Seoul, on the afternoon of the 6th. Photo by Yonhap News

On the other hand, the ruling party strongly criticized People Power Party lawmakers who defended Park and called for his resignation. Choi In-ho, the senior spokesperson for the Democratic Party, urged in a written briefing on the 21st, "Park Deok-heum should resign immediately, and the People Power Party must take responsibility as a public party."

Choi said, "Kim Ki-hyun of the People Power Party defended Park by saying, 'There is no law prohibiting Park's family from doing business,' which is utterly outrageous," and stressed, "The Conflict of Interest Prevention Act, which was stalled in the 20th National Assembly, must be enacted in the 21st National Assembly."

No Woong-rae, a senior member of the Democratic Party, criticized the People Power Party during the morning supreme council meeting, saying, "They made a fuss over a minister's leave approval by phone, demanding the minister resign, but they ignore the beam in their own eye," and added, "A decades-old corrupt party cannot suddenly claim the right to talk about justice and fairness overnight."

He continued, "If the People Power Party truly fears the power of the people, it should take firm measures to eradicate corruption and bribery," and urged, "The ruling and opposition parties should swiftly pass legislation related to conflict of interest."

Shin Dong-geun, another senior member of the Democratic Party, also at the supreme council meeting, said, "Park Deok-heum may be subject not only to violations of the Public Officials Ethics Act and the Anti-Corruption Act but also to the crime of bribery by a third party," and strongly criticized, "Before nitpicking the expulsion of Kim Hong-gul, the People Power Party should expel Jo Soo-jin, Park Deok-heum, and Yoon Chang-hyun."

Some lawmakers have proposed the 'Conflict of Interest Prevention Act' to prevent cases like Park's.

On the same day, Kim Nam-guk of the Democratic Party announced plans to propose an amendment to the National Assembly Act that would discipline members who engage in profit-seeking or private interests related to their committee duties.

He also plans to propose amendments to the Public Officials Ethics Act to prohibit high-ranking officials, their spouses, and direct ascendants and descendants living together from entering into sole-source contracts with corporations they effectively own.

Earlier, the Free Democratic Youth Coalition, the Civic Coalition 'Hamkke,' and the Livelihood Economy Research Institute filed a police complaint on the 15th against Park for abuse of authority, violation of the Anti-Corruption Act, and violation of the Public Officials Ethics Act.

These organizations claimed, "From 2012, when Park served as a member of the National Assembly's Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee for six years, five construction companies under the names of his wife, son, and siblings secured large-scale contracts from supervised institutions," and "In the 2015 Seoul City audit, he directly requested Seoul City to adopt construction methods favorable to his family's companies."

Meanwhile, Park asserted his innocence, saying, "There was no conflict of interest." In a phone interview with Yonhap News Agency that day, he stated, "If this is a conflict of interest, then the president's children should not be allowed to work anywhere," and "If a company's sales increase or the company does well, that would all be considered a conflict of interest."

Park emphasized that the controversial construction contracts were awarded through open bidding. He said, "My family's company won the contract through a public competitive bidding process," and stressed, "If the fairness of this bidding is denied, it would mean the collapse of the Republic of Korea."