Ahn’s aide counters ‘hypocrisy’ allegation

An aide to Ahn Cheol-soo, a Seoul National University professor, strove to counter allegations Thursday that Ahn used double standards in corporate ethics.

In a radio interview, Keum Tae-sup, a partner at the Seoul-based law firm Jipyong and Jisung, said Ahn’s signing of a petition to show leniency to then jailed Chey Tae-won, chairman of SK Group, in 2003 was inappropriate.

“It was a mistake. Ahn knows this, and that’s why he said earlier that he was responsible for the mistake and the criticism was due,” Keum said.

The lawyer denied the claims that Ahn joined the campaign to help reduce Chey’s sentence or free him in return for the business tycoon’s investment in a firm called AI Security, which was led by Ahn back then.

“If Ahn wanted to express his gratitude because of Chey’s investment, he would have filed the petition on his own, rather than joining the 40-man campaign,” Keum said.

Some 40 members of the V-Society, a fraternity consisting of business leaders of conglomerates and start-ups, joined the petition to help the SK chairman. Chey was then serving a jail term on charges of audit fraud.

Ahn’s participation emerged recently as the founder of the computer vaccine provider AhnLab was described as a hypocrite.

In public speeches and newly-released book, “Thoughts of Ahn Cheol-soo,” he is critical of conglomerates and argues that corrupt business leaders should be sent to jail if they are found to be involved in corruption scandals.

Ahn alleged law enforcement authorities didn’t punish some conglomerates to curry favor with them, which he said was wrong.

He has called for economic justice and corporate social responsibility to achieve a fair society at a time of social polarization and a deepening income gap between high- and low-income earners.

But his past record, especially his support for the campaign to aid the corrupt businessman, revealed that there is a gap between his words and acts.

Presidential candidates attacked Ahn for his allegedly hypocritical stance on conglomerates.

Rep. Park Geun-hye, the leading presidential candidate hopeful of the ruling Saenuri Party, joined forces in attacking Ahn. She described his involvement in the campaign to save the business tycoon as the very thing which the ruling party must do away with. Park and Ahn have been leading various surveys on who will be the next president.

During the radio interview, Keum attempted to shed light on Ahn’s side of the story concerning the allegations as politicians are gearing up to politicize the V-Society campaign to discredit him. Ahn has yet to declare whether he will join the presidential race. He has said he will make his decision soon.

Keum denied the claims that Ahn pretends to be a caring ordinary citizen in public, while enjoying an exclusive life by hanging out with business tycoons in the V-Society.

“The fraternity is not a gathering of socialites. Members of the V-Society agreed to create the group to help start-up businesses and venture companies with business knowhow and capital,” the lawyer said.

Keum said he didn’t see the possibility of Ahn running in the presidential race as an independent candidate. He declined to answer whether Ahn plans to join the primary to select the standard bearer of the opposition camp, saying it is premature to speculate on this. <The Korea Times/Kang Hyun-kyung>

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