Ministry of Industry Recommends Dismissal of Productivity Headquarters Chairman over 'Thesis Ghostwriting' Allegations

The Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy (MOTIE) has reportedly decided to recommend the dismissal of Chairman Noh Gyu-seong of the Korea Productivity Center (KPC), a special corporation under its jurisdiction.

According to the audit results received on the 27th by Rep. Yoon Young-seok of the People Power Party from MOTIE, Chairman Noh had his subordinates ghostwrite a book (Digital Small Giants) and a thesis (a project from Sunmoon University Industry-Academic Cooperation Foundation) under his name.

MOTIE reportedly concluded in the audit that Chairman Noh’s act of having subordinates ghostwrite these works, despite his status as a professor, violated the 'Research Ethics Guidelines' and constituted intentional or gross negligence.

Additionally, the audit results included findings that Chairman Noh improperly received and used marketing activity expenses and separate overseas travel allowances as salary-type expenses. MOTIE plans to demand the recovery of these unlawfully and improperly received expenses.

MOTIE recently completed the audit regarding allegations of misconduct by Chairman Noh and plans to notify KPC of the audit results, including these details, on the 30th.

Appointed in February 2018, Chairman Noh was a professor in the Department of Business Administration at Sunmoon University and served as a member of the Presidential 4th Industrial Revolution Committee from 2017 to 2018. His term is until February next year.