Anti-Corruption Commission to Focus on Receiving Reports of Bid Rigging and Other Unfair Practices

Chairperson Eunjeong Park of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission met with whistleblower A, who reported unfair collusion among business operators, at the Government Joint Civil Service Center in the Government Seoul Office Building on the afternoon of the 29th. She encouraged the whistleblower and sought advice on improving the whistleblower protection system. (Photo by Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission)

[Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission announced on the 1st that it will accept public interest reports on unfair trade practices such as bid rigging and illegal subcontracting until the 31st of next month.

The targets for reporting include ▲participating in bids after prior collusion among successful bidders ▲providing money or gifts to hospital officials by pharmaceutical companies to induce prescription of medicines ▲subcontracting the entire contracted construction work ▲renting out licenses to secure construction contracts, among others.

Witnesses of unfair trade practices can visit or mail their reports to the Government Joint Civil Complaint Center (Seoul) or the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission Comprehensive Civil Complaint Counseling Center (Sejong). Reports can also be made via the Integrity Portal or by calling 1398 or 110 without an area code.

The Commission also stated that it will thoroughly protect whistleblowers. Protective measures include safeguarding against disadvantages that may arise from reporting and protection from threats to life or physical safety.

The Commission operates a 'Non-Anonymous Proxy Reporting System' allowing reporters to file reports through lawyers without revealing their identity, as well as an advisory lawyer group.

The list of advisory lawyers is posted on the Integrity Portal, and consultations can be made via email.

A Commission official stated, "We plan to deploy professional investigators with extensive experience in investigating unfair trade practices to promptly handle public interest reports received during the focused reporting period."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.