Prevent conflict of interest

Lawmakers should pass bill aimed at eliminating corruption

The government has proposed a bill aimed at preventing conflicts of interest involving civil servants and lawmakers. The bill comes six years after a similar bill was aborted in the process of deliberation at the National Assembly.

The Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission (ACRC) plans to present a bill to the Assembly soon with a view to eliminate corruption in the officialdom and political circles more effectively.

The draft bill, if enacted, will ban public officials and lawmakers from putting their personal interests ahead of professional duties or responsibilities.

The state-run ACRC came up with the bill following a property speculation scandal involving Rep. Sohn Hyewon. Last month, she was indicted on charges of violating the Anti-Corruption Law by purchasing real estate in Mokpo City, South Jolla Province, for alleged speculation. Sohn, a member of the National Assembly Culture and Tourism Committee, is now an independent lawmaker after bolting out from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea due to the scandal.

Her case has stirred up controversy since early this year. Sohn is suspected of having used her authority and status as a lawmaker for her personal interests through the speculative investment. She faces allegations that she bought buildings and land in Mokpo after obtaining confidential information about an urban development project in the city's old district.

It is indeed belated for the government to seek the legislation. But it is better late than never in that almost all advanced countries such as the United States, Britain, Germany and Japan already have laws to prevent such conflicts of interest.

Lawmakers of the ruling and opposition parties scuttled a similar bill in 2013 when an anti-corruption bill proposed by then ACRC chief Kim Youngran was submitted to the Assembly. So the country failed to have the legal grounds to prevent conflicts of interest although it enacted the Anti-Corruption Law in 2015. This time, legislators should not try to block the bill again. They must go beyond partisan and personal interests to pass it without any changes or delays, to root out corruption.