PPP chief calls for BAI audit of Korea's election watchdog

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PPP chief calls for BAI audit of Korea's election watchdog

People Power Party leader Kim Gi-hyeon, center, criticizes the National Election Commission regarding the alleged nepotism at the party's office at the National Assembly on Sunday. [YONHAP]

People Power Party leader Kim Gi-hyeon, center, criticizes the National Election Commission regarding the alleged nepotism at the party's office at the National Assembly on Sunday. [YONHAP]

The People Power Party (PPP) is calling for an audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection of the nation's election oversight, saying corruption has gone unfettered under the guise of "independence."
 
"It feels as though the National Election Commission (NEC) is testing the people's patience," the PPP leader Kim Gi-hyeon said on Sunday. "A simple apology is not taking responsibility."
 
"Although NEC Chair Rho Tae- ak had apologized over the nepotism, regarding the follow-up, we couldn't feel any genuineness to the apology made."
 
Kim urged the NEC head to step down.
 
Rho last week made his first public apology almost a month after allegations emerged that the children of former and incumbent high-ranking officials at the NEC had received preferential treatment during the hiring process.
 
Last week, NEC Secretary General Park Chan-jin and Deputy Secretary General Song Bong-seop tendered their resignations after allegations were made that their daughters had been unfairly hired to work at the NEC's regional offices, possibly violating ethics codes and abusing their authority.
 
After a meeting presided by Rho, the NEC concluded that it would actively cooperate with any investigations conducted by the National Assembly, the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) or investigative authorities.
 
However, it added that it would not accept an audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI).
 
"Under constitutional practice, the NEC has not been subject to job-related audits due to the checks and balances between state agencies, and our members' opinion is that it would be difficult to comply with such an inspection," the NEC said in the statement Friday.
 
The NEC claimed that under Article 97 of the Constitution, the election agency is excluded from the scope of audits that the BAI can conduct.
 
It also noted that Article 17 of the State Public Officials Act stipulates that an "inspection over the personnel affairs of public officials" should be conducted by the NEC secretary general, Constitutional Court secretary general or National Assembly secretary general.
 
The BAI, in turn, said it would "sternly" deal with any attempts by the NEC to interfere with an audit, claiming that while the National Assembly and courts were excluded from its inspections, the NEC was not.
 
It said in a statement Friday that "any acts interfering with the BAI's legitimate audit activities will be dealt with sternly, regardless of rank, in accordance with Article 51 of the Board of Audit and Inspection Act."
 
The BAI said, "the NEC is in charge of election-related management and execution tasks, which are basically administrative affairs, and as the NEC is an administrative agency related to elections, it is also subject to audits."
 
It added that thus far, it has refrained from auditing the NEC "in order to respect the independence of election management."
 
Kim argued that more than an investigation through the ACRC is needed, especially considering how the ACRC lacks investigative authority, including the power to seize evidence.
 
"That is why an audit by the BAI is necessary," Kim said. "The NEC, which is well aware of this, is trying to pretend to undergo an investigation, a real one of which might uncover all of the immoral and illegal activities that had been committed," Kim said.
 
The National Assembly is controlled by the Democratic Party, which holds a parliamentary majority, and the ACRC is headed by Jeon Hyun-heui, a former DP lawmaker.
 
Rho was appointed to head the election oversight agency during the previous Moon Jae-in administration.
 
"I have become certain that the NEC and the DP are in a partnership," Kim said. "In every election, the NEC often interpreted regulations in ways that were advantageous to the DP."
 
Critics have used the latest nepotism allegations to point to other questionable actions by the NEC, including how early votes were collected in unsealed containers, including a plastic basket, a cardboard box and even a plastic bag during the last presidential election in March 2022.
 
At the time, the NEC admitted to mishandling the ballots, which had been turned in by voters quarantined with Covid-19, but claimed that no vote fraud had been committed.
 
The NEC rejected suggestions of a BAI audit over the vote fraud suspicions, too.
 
More recently, it was revealed that the National Intelligence Service had warned the NEC about potential hacking attempts by North Korea, which the election agency tried to keep hidden. 

BY LEE HO-JEONG, SARAH KIM [lee.hojeong@joongang.co.kr]
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