If Job-Related, Bribery 'Allowed'... Numerous Absurd Internal Regulations Exposed in Public Institutions

[Sejong=Asia Economy Reporter Moon Chaeseok] Public institutions that effectively allowed the acceptance of money and gifts by arbitrarily expanding the exceptions to the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act were caught in large numbers.

A research institute in the science and information public sector stipulated in its internal regulations that "'money and gifts provided within the scope permitted by the director for the performance of duties' are exceptions to the prohibition on acceptance under the Improper Solicitation and Graft Act."

Another public institution allowed the use of corporate cards during late-night and holidays even if unrelated to work, provided prior approval was obtained.

There were also institutions that did not establish restrictions or verification procedures for private contracts with retirees, despite such contracts being prohibited.

On the 26th, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission announced that it conducted a corruption impact assessment on the internal regulations of 12 public institutions in the science and information sector, identifying 50 improvement items including these issues, and recommended improvements to each institution.

The Commission has been conducting a full survey of internal regulations at 495 public institutions since last year.

Chairperson Jeon Hyun-hee of the Commission stated, "We will actively identify and improve corruption-inducing factors inherent in the internal regulations operated by public institutions, such as conflicts of interest and excessive discretionary power."

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