Allegations that Kyowon Group Chairman Jang Pyung-soon's Yangpyeong residence received abnormal permits have resurfaced after a year, bringing to light structural issues in society, including the police's arbitrary closure of missing person cases and Saemaul Geumgo's embezzlement scandals.
Allegations arose that the People Power Party was aware of the lawyer's concurrent employment yet proceeded with the appointment, while Coupang claimed ignorance of the lawyer's selection to the committee. As the controversy grew, the lawyer initiated resignation procedures from the ethics committee, leading to criticism of the People Power Party's inadequate vetting process.
A police officer arbitrarily closed a missing person case, even after finding the individual, on the grounds that the person 'did not want to meet their family.' It was confirmed that this officer had closed cases in the same manner previously, raising concerns about a structural flaw in the police system that allows officers to close missing person cases without final supervisory approval.
In response, the National Police Agency plans to introduce a system requiring final approval from a supervisor when closing missing person cases in the future.
A Saemaul Geumgo branch manager was found to have illicitly used customer seals to open accounts and execute loans, then embezzling the funds. So far, the confirmed damage extends to 20 accounts, totaling over 760 million won in losses. Such incidents indicate that embezzlement and illegal loans by employees have become entrenched structural problems within Saemaul Geumgo.
With all but two robbery cases confirmed to be perpetrated by employees, criticism mounts that 'inside thieves' are more dangerous, and the structural negligence within Saemaul Geumgo is deemed a severe problem.
Representative Na Kyung-won criticized the opposition's actions as 'silencing opposition lawmakers' and 'targeted tactics,' but the opposition countered by referring to 'parliamentary majoritarian totalitarianism.'
This drew criticism as an attempt to undermine the historical significance of 5.18, and was contrasted with issues surrounding pro-Japanese collaborator cemeteries, drawing a critical perspective.
Journalist Cho Gab-je strongly criticized pastors who advocate 'election fraud theories,' calling them 'false prophets destined for hell.' This stance is noteworthy as it contrasts with Cho Gab-je's past actions, where he allied with figures like Pastor Jeon Kwang-hoon, even calling him a 'pastor who confronts Moon Jae-in.' His changed position, where he now designates pastors like Son Hyeon-bo as 'false prophets' after previously aligning with 'pastors who confront Moon Jae-in,' is notable.
The residence, located on a 7,000-pyeong plot with an 80-car parking lot, is criticized for its unsuitably large and unusual facility structure for a private home, raising suspicions of special treatment in the permitting process.
The area around Chairman Jang Pyung-soon's residence construction site, with narrow roads less than 4 meters wide, faced severe problems due to dozens of large construction vehicles, such as ready-mix concrete trucks, passing daily. Dangerous situations where residents' children were nearly involved in accidents occurred frequently, leading to damaged village roads and cracks in nearby houses, causing immense harm to residents' safety and living environment.
Initially, they mistook the reporters for ordinary petitioners and tried to guide them, but as soon as Newstamsa's identity was revealed, their attitude immediately changed, and they attempted to prevent coverage. Despite Jeon Jin-sun being in the county head's office, the meeting ultimately did not take place.
The Yangpyeong County Personnel Committee is currently set to determine the level of disciplinary action, but the Yangpyeong County Audit Department has refrained from disclosing specific results, stating it is the committee's inherent authority in procedural matters. The Personnel Committee will make the final decision on disciplinary action and its severity based on the audit results.
This is identified as a factor that makes effective auditing and disciplinary action for inappropriate permitting practices difficult due to organizational limitations within the county office.
Minor disciplinary action typically includes reprimands or salary reductions. Questions are being raised about the effectiveness of such disciplinary action given that construction is already complete. Critics argue that light disciplinary action is insufficient to fulfill accountability when completed facilities cannot be reversed due to problems in the permitting process.
In particular, it is reported that many of the 25 officials who received minor disciplinary action related to the Kyowon residence plan to appeal, indicating growing dissatisfaction within the organization over the difficulty of their work and the perceived unfairness of the disciplinary actions.
Gyeonggi Province requested disciplinary action based on its own audit results, but the actual disciplinary measures are left to the discretion of Yangpyeong County's internal judgment.
Answers come from the transcript, with the exact spot cited.
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