Sancheong-gun Initiates Disciplinary Action Regarding Improper Work Handling by Public Officials

Dansung Jungchon Agricultural Road Expansion and Paving Construction

Related, 'Person in Charge Confirmed Negligence in Duties'

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Choi Soon-kyung] Sancheong-gun, Gyeongnam Province, confirmed negligence in the duties of some public officials through an internal audit related to the real estate speculation and preferential treatment allegations involving the family of former Gyeongnam Provincial Assembly member Park Woo-beom, which surfaced last year, and has initiated disciplinary procedures.

The audit results are the outcome of a process that took about five months following the call for an internal audit by the Western Gyeongnam Press Coalition on September 20 of last year, drawing significant attention to the developments.

According to the internal audit results, public officials involved in the 'Jungchon Farm Road Expansion and Paving Project' in Danseong-myeon, Sancheong-gun, which was the starting point of the preferential treatment allegations against the family of former Assembly member Park Woo-beom, were found to have operated the residents' briefing sessions in a formal manner and neglected sufficient review based on objective data and supporting documents.

Sancheong County Office, Gyeongnam.

The 'Jungchon Farm Road Expansion and Paving Project' has been under suspicion of preferential treatment after an agricultural cooperative corporation, mainly established by relatives of Assembly member Park, purchased 63,511㎡ of forest land and requested the project from Sancheong-gun under the pretext of a residents' long-standing wish.

In this regard, some media outlets intensively reported that former Assembly member Park Woo-beom exploited local residents' taxes for private gain by illegally increasing land value through relatives who served as executives at the Gyeongnam Provincial Government. Meanwhile, Park's side filed complaints with the police regarding alleged misconduct by the reporters, causing a major stir.

The audit revealed that despite seven building permits being approved before the Jungchon Farm Road expansion and paving project in Danseong, indicating ongoing residential land development activities that required route reconsideration, the residents' briefing sessions were poorly conducted and failed to fulfill their intended purpose.

The audit report concluded, “The Jungchon Farm Road Expansion and Paving Project in Danseong failed to sufficiently review solutions to initially identified issues (difficulty in owner agreement and excessive project costs), neglecting fundamental principles of fiscal management.”

Accordingly, it recommended disciplinary action against the responsible officials under Article 69 (Causes for Discipline), Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 2 of the Local Public Officials Act, following the disciplinary procedures stipulated in Article 72 of the same law.

A Sancheong-gun official stated, “Based on the audit materials, it is impossible to confirm external involvement,” and added, “Regarding the possible violation of the State Compensation Act related to the ‘Jungchon Farm Road Expansion and Paving Project’ in Danseong-myeon, we plan to review whether to pursue recovery claims if necessary, including investigations by the Gyeongnam Provincial Police Agency.”

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