[Asia Economy Reporter Yoo Byung-don] It has been revealed that contractors contracted by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education manipulated photos used to interpret asbestos residue after asbestos removal work.
On the 18th, the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education announced that, following a report received from the Auditor's Public Interest Reporting Center, an audit was conducted which confirmed that companies conducting asbestos residue investigations after asbestos removal work at 17 schools in Seoul during the 2021 winter vacation had reused electron microscope analysis photos.
The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education removes asbestos from school facilities every winter vacation and verifies the presence of asbestos residue through electron microscope inspections conducted by contractors.
The audit revealed that all four companies contracted by the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education for asbestos residue investigation during the 2021 winter vacation had duplicated electron microscope analysis photos in their reports.
The Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education plans to report two companies with severe violations to investigative authorities and impose sanctions to prevent their participation in public bidding or private contracts. They also plan to recover the payments made for the contracted services.
Additionally, strengthened standards have been implemented, including adding 'component analysis' to the electron microscope analysis of asbestos residue.
A representative from the Seoul Metropolitan Office of Education explained, "For the 17 schools where fraudulent inspections occurred, we plan to verify the on-site conditions and conduct electron microscope investigations of air quality again in consultation with the Seoul Institute of Health and Environment."
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