Stealing from the people

It has been revealed that Byeon Yang-kyoon, the former presidential policy secretary, ordered a government fund to give 1 billion won ($1.1 million) to Heungdeok Temple, established and owned by the Venerable Yeongbae who is the chairman of Dongguk University’s board of directors.
In April when Byeon was still in office, he ordered an official in the presidential office for social policy to provide a fund to Heungdeok Temple. The official called the Ministry of the Government Administration and Home Affairs and delivered his boss’s request. The ministry found that the temple did not meet the requirements to qualify for a government fund.
The ministry then gave the money to the local government in the temple’s district for the purpose of building a bridge near the temple. The local government then gave the money to the temple to build a gallery.
They seemed to be determined to deliver the state funds to the temple no matter what it took. And this procedure only took 10 days.
This is a really well organized process for providing aid.
The Blue House, the Ministry of Government Administration and Home Affairs, and local government worked together to give state funds to a certain temple. In the process, illegal and unusual practices took place. We wonder if government funds have been delivered to casualties of natural disasters in such an effective and rapid fashion.
It is not known whether Byeon had a deal with Yeongbae and, if so, what the deal was. But a presidential policy secretary, who works right under the president, ordered state funds to be allocated for his private purposes. The government organization carried out his unreasonable order without any resistance.
It is unbelievable that a government official can use 1 billion won of government funds as if it were his own. It is surprising that such an illegal order was passed without anyone raising a question inside the government.
The Blue House acted unusually fast to confirm the case.
But we wonder what the presidential office has done before this case was revealed. One cannot tell if Byeon has been the only person who misused the government’s budget for his own purposes. When one of the president’s closest aides can loot the government’s budget, nobody can tell where that budget is being misused and how much is being misappropriated.
It is a pity that the people still have to pay taxes to such an immoral regime.