[2020 National Audit] "Lee Eui-kyung, MFDS Commissioner, Holds Inappropriate Stocks"... Controversy Over Job-Related Issues

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Seo So-jung] Lawmakers from both ruling and opposition parties have raised concerns over whether the stocks held by Lee Ui-kyung, Commissioner of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, are related to his official duties.

At the National Assembly Health and Welfare Committee's audit on the 13th, Kang Sun-woo, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, pointed out, "Commissioner Lee holds stocks in a company that has subsidiaries related to his official duties." She added, "In particular, Commissioner Lee's spouse holds over 200,000 shares of the company, which, based on the closing price on the 12th of this month, amounts to more than 1 billion KRW."

Rep. Kang stated, "NVH Korea is an automobile parts manufacturer, but this company has Wonbang Tech, which is related to negative pressure wards, and GH New Materials, a mask-related company, as its subsidiaries."

Lee Jong-sung, a member of the People Power Party, also said, "It is widely acknowledged in the securities market that this company is related to negative pressure hospital rooms." He added, "These companies are ultimately owned by the same CEO, and their stock prices move together." Rep. Lee also mentioned that NVH Korea's Chairman Koo Ja-gyeom and Commissioner Lee and his spouse studied at overseas universities during the same period.

In response, Commissioner Lee explained, "The mask-related company manufactures filters for automobiles and air purifiers, so it is unrelated to my duties, and the other company is a semiconductor cleanroom design and construction firm, so there is no relevance to my work." He continued, "The stocks were acquired before my appointment, and there have been no new acquisitions since; I believe there is no current relevance to my official duties."

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