Defense minister nominee faces mounting suspicions

By Jun Ji-hye

Defense Minister-nominee Song Young-moo is under mounting suspicion involving his close ties to the arms industry and other ethical lapses.

This raises the possibility for him to face tough questioning during the upcoming parliamentary confirmation hearings expected to take place next week.

Since Song was named by President Moon Jae-in to head the Ministry of National Defense, June 11, opposition lawmakers have already been criticizing him saying he is unfit to serve in the post.

One of the major talking points is a large amount of consulting fees he received from a law firm and a defense company.

After retiring from service as a chief of naval operations in March 2008, Song joined the law firm, Yulchon, in January 2009 as a standing adviser.

He worked for the law firm for 33 months until September 2011 and received a total of 990 million won ($867,000) in consulting fees, according to Rep. Kim Hack-yong of the conservative opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP).

The amount of money provoked controversy as Song’s aides had previously said that his annual income while working for Yulchon was about 150 million won.

For about two-and-a-half years from July 2013, Song worked for LIG Nex1, a domestic defense company, as an adviser. During this time, he received about 240 million won, which critics say was too much as well.

Some critics raised suspicions that while working at the defense company, Song may have exerted his influence as a former chief of naval operations, citing that the firm won more contracts for arms projects pushed by the navy and marine corps.

Rep. Kim raised another suspicion that Song attempted to minimize an investigation into a large scale procurement corruption case involving naval officials in 2007 when he was serving as a chief of naval operations.

The corruption case was first revealed in 2006 following a report from a whistle blower who was a lieutenant commander, and more than 30 figures eventually faced judicial action in 2009.

“Song received a report about the corruption but attempted to cover it up,” Kim said. “I don’t think he is the right man for (President Moon Jae-in’s pledge of) defense reform.”

Song denied the suspicions, saying through his aide, “I repeatedly ordered a thorough investigation, including conducting account tracking, to find the truth.”

Rep. Kim also claimed Song lied when he said he made a false registration of his address only once. Kim said it was confirmed that Song falsely registered his residence four times.

Song later admitted this, but claimed he did not have any aims in doing this such as real estate speculation.

False residence registration is a criminal offense in South Korea, punishable by up to three years in jail and a fine of up to 10 million won, although the law has not been strictly enforced.

Rep. Chung Woo-taik, interim chief and floor leader of the LKP, said his party will thoroughly verify the qualifications of Song as a defense minister in the upcoming hearings.

Chung also criticized the President, saying, “Moon failed to fully examine his nominees before naming them.”