GNP Regional Chapters Could Be Main Target


By Na Jeong-ju
Staff Reporter
The state prosecution is seeking to launch an investigation into the chiefs of 270 regional chapters of both the ruling and opposition parties in a bid to reveal details of illegal funds collected from major conglomerates during the 2002 presidential elections.

The Supreme Public Prosecutors’ Office on Wednesday said it is considering expanding the probe to look into any suspicious flows of illegal funds from political parties’ headquarters to local chapters.

The move may target a number of successful candidates from last week’s general elections as many of them headed the regional chapters of their parties during the 2002 presidential campaign.

Prosecution sources said the main target will be the opposition Grand National Party (GNP), which was found to have transferred a huge sum of illegal funds to its local chapters.

The sources added that the then ruling Millennium Democratic Party (MDP), which fielded Roh Moo-hyun as its presidential candidate, and Roh’s campaign team may also be affected.

The GNP immediately protested the prosecution’s move, claiming that many party officials and regional chapter chiefs received the money without knowing the campaign funds were illegally raised.

Prosecutor Ahn Dai-hui, who is leading the investigation, made it clear that the probe into the campaign chapters is part of the prosecution’s efforts to take illegally raised funds back from the parties.

``In all circumstances, profits earned through illegal means should be retrieved,’’ Ahn told reporters at his office in Seoul, referring to the 58 billion won and 4.2 billion won funneled by the GNP and MDP, respectively, to their regional chapters during the 2002 campaign.

``In reality, however, it is difficult to look into all campaign offices that were active during the presidential election. We will discuss further how to carry out this plan.’’

Ahn’s comments came after the court on Tuesday ruled that donations _ legal or illegal _ to political parties are by law not subject to legal confiscation, clearing the fines sought against a former GNP finance director. Lee Jae-hyun, who managed financial affairs for the opposition party during the 2002 election, however, got a suspended jail term on charges of collecting about 66 billion won from conglomerates.

An investigation into two GNP lawmakers-elect is already in swing after lawsuits were filed against them over the alleged misuse of 200 million won in campaign funds during the presidential campaign, prosecutors said.

The prosecution move is certain to deal a severe blow to the political community, amid fears that in the worst case scenario up to 61 winners of the general elections may lose their seats due to involvement in illegal campaigning during the elections last week.

On March 8, the prosecution unveiled the interim results of its probe into the fundraising scandals, announcing that the GNP raised 82.3 trillion won in illegal funds ahead of the presidential poll. The GNP was found to have funneled 58 billion won of the funds to its local chapters.

The prosecution also discovered that the MDP transferred 4.2 billion won of its illegal funds to its regional chapters.

jj@koreatimes.co.kr