It was additionally revealed that the CEOs of six of the companies that signed contracts for the Saemangeum World Scout Jamboree were related to the Democratic Party of Korea. This is the result of a thorough investigation of business representatives of ‘Jamboree-related contract companies’ received from the Public Procurement Service on the 30th by People Power Party lawmaker Yang Geum-hee, a member of the National Assembly’s Budget and Accounts Special Committee.
According to Rep. Yang, six companies signed a total of six contracts, one each, worth 371.86 million won. All but one case were private contracts, and all were located in Jeonbuk. Including the case where this paper reported on the 14th that a company represented by Jeonju-eul Regional Committee Chairman of the Democratic Party of Jeonbuk Province won 2.359 billion won through 8 contracts (7 of which were voluntary contracts), a total of 7 companies A total of 2,731.53 million won was received through 14 contracts. 〈See JoongAng Ilbo, August 14, page 3〉
First, the event agency, which started business in Gunsan in June 2021 with a capital of 10 million won, signed a 19.65 million won contract last month in the name of ‘Jamboree Gunsan City Public Relations Center Equipment Rental Service’. Coincidentally, Mr. A, the CEO of this company, was the joint chairman of the Democratic Party’s Jeonbuk Provincial Youth Committee’s youth committee during the March 9 presidential election last year. On the 26th, Mr. A wrote on Facebook, “Enjoying the first weekend of rest in a long time,” after attending the “National Rally to Condemn Marine Dumping of Fukushima Contaminated Water” held by Democratic Party lawmakers, including Representative Lee Jae-myung, in Seoul.
An event agency located in Jeonju also signed a contract of 17.94 million won for ‘agency services for the pan-province pledge event to successfully hold the jamboree.’ Representative B also declared his support for then-Democratic Party candidate Lee Jae-myeong during the last presidential election under the name of ‘Jeonbuk Village Self-Government Innovation Activist’, and in November last year, he was appointed as the head of the Public Relations and Communication Committee of the Jeonju Gap Regional Committee of the Jeonbuk Provincial Party of the Democratic Party.
In addition, Mr. C’s company, which declared support for candidate Lee Jae-myung as an executive of the Jeonbuk Business Association during the last presidential election, also received the ‘service for flying a large kite within the Jamboree compound’ (KRW 20.8 million). The company of Mr. D, a former Jeonju city council member belonging to the Uri Party (currently the Democratic Party안전놀이터), also received 26.45 million won in the name of ‘purchasing government-supplied materials to create an exhibition space.’
In 2018, Jeonju Broadcasting signed a contract worth 268 million won for ‘Jamboree Jeollabuk-do Promotional Center Operation Event Agency Service’, and the CEO at the time was Taek-gon Kim. Mr. Kim served as a standing member of the Korea Communications Standards Commission from 2011 to 2014 on the recommendation of the Democratic Party. In addition, architect Seung Hyo-sang, former President Moon Jae-in’s classmate at Gyeongnam High School in Busan and chairman of the support group for Democratic Party lawmaker Choi Kang-wook, was in charge of the ‘Jamboree course activity landscape rest area feasibility review and basic plan service’ (KRW 19 million).
In response to Rep. Yang Geum-hee’s issue, company officials refuted, saying, “The contract was concluded in accordance with legal procedures.” In a phone call with the JoongAng Ilbo, Mr. A said, “It is true that I was a member of the Democratic Party during the last presidential election, but I left the party in the middle of last year when I was appointed as the chairman of the Youth Policy Coordination Committee of Jeollabuk-do.” He added, “Even last July when I signed the voluntary contract, I am still a member of the Democratic Party.” “It’s not like this,” he said.
An official from Jeonbuk Province also said, “There are a lot of Democratic Party members in Jeonbuk, so there will be no choice but to overlap,” adding, “Also, Jeonju Broadcasting is a large company in Jeonbuk, and Seung Hyo-sang is also a famous architect. “It is unlikely that the contract was signed simply because it is related to the Democratic Party,” he emphasized.Representative Yang Geum-hee said, “It is suspicious that nearly 70% of the jamboree-related contracts were made through private contracts, and circumstances have revealed that several people related to the Democratic Party are beneficiaries of private contracts. This may be the tip of the iceberg.” At the same time, she emphasized, “We will carefully investigate this not only through the audit by the Board of Audit and Inspection, but also at the National Assembly level.”