Hwang Daesan: "The SW Maestro Program Is Not Only for Current Students"
Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, is giving a greeting speech at the entrance ceremony of the 4th Women's Political Academy held at the central party office in Yeouido, Seoul on the 21st. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Amid allegations that Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, unjustly received a scholarship by participating in a government project for which he was ineligible during his military service, the selection committee chairman at the time rebutted on the 21st, stating that "except for active workers, anyone could apply without restrictions."
Hwang Daesan, who served as the selection committee chairman during the 2010 selection of 'Software (SW) Maestro Course Trainees,' said on Twitter that day, "It has been noisy continuously, and I even received contact from Kim Yong-min, a member of the Democratic Party's office," adding, "The core of the controversy seems to be whether Lee’s participation in the 2010 SW Maestro course was illegal or not, so I, as the selection committee chairman at the time, thought it would be better to clarify my position."
He explained, "The SW Maestro course was not a program exclusively for university students," and added, "It was a program intended to select, support, and nurture outstanding SW talents, not a program limited to enrolled students. It was a course open to applications without restrictions except for active workers."
He further added, "There is also a question about whether industrial technical personnel could apply, and there was a government guideline that industrial technical personnel were not considered active workers."
Regarding the recruitment notice posted by some ruling party lawmakers stating eligibility as "those enrolled in university or graduate school," he said, "That was probably a draft prepared by the government side, and what applicants actually saw was the recruitment notice posted on the SW Maestro website," adding, "This vividly shows how conspiracy theories are created."
In relation to this, Lee also introduced Hwang’s post on Facebook, sarcastically commenting, "The person who served as the selection committee chairman at the time has also stated his position. The Democratic Party’s efforts (to raise suspicions) are remarkable."
Earlier, Kim Yong-min, a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party, claimed at the party’s Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 18th, "There seems to be reasonable grounds for the suspicion that Lee participated in a national project for which he was ineligible while serving as industrial technical personnel."
Lee, after graduating from university, served as industrial technical personnel in 2010 and applied for and was accepted into the first selection process of the Ministry of Knowledge Economy’s 'SW Maestro' program. However, since this program was only open to enrolled students, Kim claimed that Lee, who was serving his military alternative service as a graduate, was ineligible to apply.
Following Hwang’s tweet, Kim posted on Facebook, "Lee keeps trying to evade this issue. Is it because of Hwang’s tweet? Is this the person who gave permission to graduates over the phone?" He added, "Violating the announcement and regulations is obviously a serious problem. This cannot be concluded with just a few words."
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