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November 26, 2009
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| Fierce resistance met attempts yesterday by the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission to secure the power to probe public servants’ irregularities with opposition parties condemning Lee Jae-oh, the commission’s chairman and a confidant of President Lee Myung-bak, for trying to “wield omnipotent power.” The commission unveiled a plan yesterday to submit a bill to revise the law governing its efforts to intensify investigations against corrupt public servants and government offices. To this end, the commission seeks to empower itself with the right to demand a financial institution to provide it with a public servant’s transaction records. The commission also seeks the right to demand public offices to provide information regarding an individual in order to use the materials to evaluate public servants’ transparency. A public servant must also cooperate with the commission to this end, according to the revision plan. Military service, immigration, real estate transactions and properties records will be covered by the revision. President Lee, whose Grand National Party opposed attempts by the administration of former President Roh Moo-hyun to establish a special investigation body for high-ranking public servants’ corruption, is pushing forward a similar plan. The commission, under the supervision of the prime minister, also wants to transform itself into a presidential commission. If necessary, the commission’s head should attend a cabinet meeting, the revision plan said. But opposition parties were infuriated. “The commission has attempted to dominate all ministries since Lee Jae-oh became head,” the Democratic Party said in a statement. “The commission’s attempt to wield omnipotent power is clearly an indication that Lee wants to legitimately exercise power above the law.” The Democratic Labor Party also criticized the attempt. “Let’s be honest. Are the high-ranking public servants still corrupt because the commission’s power is weak?” the party asked. “We want to urge Lee to contemplate the old saying that too much is as bad as too little.” Lee made public his argument last month that the nation needs a new investigative authority to fight public servants’ corruption. The prosecution, at the time, opposed the plan. Prosecutor General Kim Joon-kyu said at the time that the prosecution alone can handle the cases. By Ser Myo-ja [myoja@joongang.co.kr] |
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