ed Ahn Cheol-soo a liar?

IT mogul should give clear account to remove suspicions

Politicians are often criticized for lying or lacking consistency.

Ahn Cheol-soo, the Seoul National University professor touted as a strong potential presidential contender for the liberal camp, has yet to actually express a clear-cut intention to run for office. Therefore, he is not a politician yet, officially.

But he seems to prematurely resemble established politicians when it comes to his way with words.

The latest in a string of doubts raised against him is that the 50-year-old software mogul-turned-scholar didn’t live in a rented property for a long time, unlike the comments he made in the recently released book “Ahn Cheol-soo’s Thoughts.’’ Published in July, the book states that he is well aware of the plight facing people who don’t own their own house because “I lived without my own home for a long time.’’

But this claim turned out to be false. He bought an apartment in Sadang-dong, southern Seoul, in 1988, the year he got married while still a graduate school student. As it turns out, he lived in the apartment for nearly four years from 1989. He did live as a tenant for a couple of years at other nearby apartments but the period was not significant enough to let him know the plight of not owning a home.

There are other suspicions surrounding the apartment in question. First of all, it’s not clear whether he paid gift taxes since he purchased the house with the financial help of his parents. A spokesman for Ahn told reporters that it would not be easy to confirm the allegation because the contract was signed more than 25 years ago.

Ahn, dean of the Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology at Seoul National University, is also suspected of engaging in real estate speculation as he bought the apartment by purchasing the “right to residency,’’ or “ttakji,’’ in the redevelopment area. The project caused fierce clashes between the developer and evicted former residents. The purchase of such a redeveloped apartment appears to contradict another comment in the book that “developers should give more consideration to the weak such as tenants in urban development projects.’’

This is not the first time Ahn has been accused of saying one thing after having done another. In July, he apologized for signing a petition pleading for leniency on behalf of SK Group Chairman Chey Tae-won who was serving a jail term for accounting fraud.

There have been several other questions of his ethical standards and Ahn’s associates say most of the allegations are part of negative campaigning aimed at discrediting him in case he enters the in presidential race ahead of the December, election.

The reason many people support him is simple. There are expectations that he will offer a new type of political leadership free from corruption and entrenched values. In this regard, it’s his duty to give clear accounts to ease all these doubts. He should be aware that “Ahn fatigue’’ is spreading fast as he has kept mum regarding his bid for too long.