Gwangju Civic Group: "Only 5 out of 18 Universities Disclose President's Salary"

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] An educational civic group in the Gwangju area revealed that among the 18 universities in the region, only 5 have disclosed their presidents' annual salaries.

The Citizens' Group for a Society Without Academic Elitism stated in a press release on the 10th, "To prevent corruption among public officials and to verify whether budget execution is fair, we recently requested information disclosure regarding the presidents' annual salaries and the basis for salary payments from 18 universities located in the Gwangju area."

They added, "As a result, only 5 universities disclosed the presidents' annual salaries," explaining, "Not only private universities but even national universities withheld this information, citing concerns that disclosing specific salary details could infringe on privacy or personal freedom."

According to the Public Officials Ethics Act, not only national university presidents but also vice presidents, hospital directors, and presidents of specialized colleges must register and disclose their assets every March. The group finds it hard to understand why national universities do not disclose the presidents' annual salaries, which are an important indicator of high-ranking public officials' wealth formation.

The group argued, "Although there is a perception that presidents and chairpersons of private universities are not public officials, private universities play a significant role in public education, accounting for more than 80% of higher education," adding, "Since massive public funds are invested, the status of private university presidents is no different from that of national and public university presidents."

They also emphasized, "Since the salaries of private school presidents and other faculty and staff are public assets funded by national taxes and tuition fees, it is only natural that the scale of the presidents' salaries and the basis for their payment be disclosed in a way that taxpayers and students can understand."

Meanwhile, the universities that disclosed their presidents' annual salaries are Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology, Gwangju National University of Education, Songwon University, Honam University, and Donggang University, totaling five schools.

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