Ewha professor grilled over favors for Choi's daughter

By Kim Bo-eun

Namkung Gon

The independent counsel team summoned Ewha Womans University’s former admissions officer Namkung Gon, Thursday, over his alleged involvement in providing favors to the daughter of President Park Geun-hye’s confidant Choi Soon-sil.

Investigators questioned him over who else at the school was behind the favors, targeting Kim Kyung-sook, a former dean of the college of science and industry convergence, and Choi Kyung-hee, the former president of the school.

Ahead of the admissions interview for Choi’s daughter, Chung Yoo-ra, Namkung allegedly told faculty members to select the candidate who brought in a gold medal. Chung, a dressage competitor, won a gold medal in a team event at the Incheon Asian Games in 2014 about a month before the interview.

Because Chung acquired the medal after the application deadline, the medal could not be reflected in her evaluation, and interviewees were not allowed to bring any personal belongings to the interview venue. But Chung showed her medal to the interviewers and was selected, even though there were two other candidates who scored higher than her in the document screening process.

At the National Assembly’s hearing last month, Namkung said he heard about Chung from Kim, indicating he received orders from Choi Kyung-hee and Kim regarding Chung’s admission.

The counsel team indicted Lyou Chul-gyun, another Ewha professor known by his penname Lee In-hwa, for helping Chung receive grades even though she did not attend classes. Lyou also said he had been ordered by Kim to do so.

Kim and Choi Kyung-hee are likely to be summoned for questioning soon.

The counsel team also summoned presidential secretary Kim Jin-soo over allegations that Cheong Wa Dae provided business favors to Samsung in return for the group’s funding Choi Soon-sil and her daughter.

Kim was allegedly involved in the government’s order to the National Pension Service (NPS), which held the deciding vote for a merger of two of Samsung’s affiliates, to support the merger last year. The merger was designed to help a smooth power transfer from Samsung Chairman Lee Kun-hee to his son, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong.

Meanwhile, new allegations have arisen that Choi and her niece Jang Si-ho attempted to seek illicit financial gains from the 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympics.

In February last year, Jang, who set up the Winter Sports Elite Center, allegedly pressured mobile carrier KT to establish a ski team and let the center manage the team. Jang established the foundation in June 2015 under the pretext of cultivating stars in winter sports such as skating and alpine skiing. As the new center did not have any prior experience in the field, KT hesitated for six months before finally refusing it.

Choi and Jang also proposed KT give research projects to her company The Blue K on developing Korea’s sports sector.

In the meantime, the counsel team said it has identified individuals who have systematically been involved in Cheong Wa Dae’s creation and management of an alleged blacklist of artists critical of the government. Former presidential chief of staff Kim Ki-choon and Culture Minister Cho Yoon-sun, who served as the presidential secretary for political affairs when the list was allegedly made, will soon face questioning.