After Retirement, 'Settlement' in Public Institutions... Anti-Corruption Commission "Abolishes Long-Term Advisory System for Retired Public Officials"

14 Public Institutions in Agriculture and Maritime Sectors
Corruption Impact Assessment of 1,417 Internal Regulations... 83 Improvement Recommendations

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok]

#A public institution had been appointing retired officials from its supervisory ministry as advisory committee members for extended periods and paying them up to 3 million KRW per month. There was also a widespread practice allowing the head of the institution to exempt disciplinary actions at their discretion, even though those subject to discipline have the right to request a retrial if they object to the disciplinary measures.

Going forward, the practice of retired officials being appointed as advisory committee members of subordinate public institutions, engaging in long-term activities, and receiving high advisory fees is expected to disappear. The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) recommended revising related regulations to prevent the long-term advisory system from being used as a de facto reemployment channel for retirees. Additionally, it mandated a two-year ban on private contracts with companies where retirees are employed as executives and the establishment of procedures to verify the subjects restricted from private contracts.

On the 14th, the ACRC announced that it had derived 15 improvement tasks and 83 recommendations for 14 public institutions in the agriculture and maritime sectors that need correction, including the abolition of the long-term advisory system for retired officials. This was based on a corruption impact assessment of 1,417 internal regulations of the relevant institutions, identifying points for improvement and recommending their correction.

The 15 improvement tasks were selected under three categories: strengthening conflict of interest prevention, enhancing transparency in personnel affairs, and improving transparency in institution management. The improvement plans include revising regulations to prevent the long-term advisory system from being used as a reemployment channel for retired public officials, deleting provisions that allow exemption of disciplinary actions at the institution head’s discretion after disciplinary measures, and supplementing regulations on banning private contracts with retirees and procedures for verifying retirees, among 83 recommendations.

Han Samseok, Director of the Anti-Corruption Bureau at the ACRC, said, "Through corruption impact assessments of public institution regulations, we will continuously strive to improve unreasonable and unfair regulations so that public institutions can operate more transparently and responsibly."

The ACRC has been conducting a full survey of regulations in 495 public institutions since last year. In the previous year, it inspected regulations of 187 institutions across seven sectors including energy, airports, and ports, recommending improvements for 1,971 cases. This year, starting with regulatory inspections of 20 public institutions in the employment and welfare sectors, it is conducting regulatory inspections targeting 99 institutions across seven sectors.