Lee Ki-heung, chairman of the Korea Sports Council, who was notified of the suspension of his duties by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (Minister Yoo In-chon, hereinafter referred to as the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism), was accepted and controversial.
The Korea Sports Council’s Sports Fair Committee held a general meeting in the conference room of the Olympic Hall in Songpa-gu, Seoul on the 12th and approved the application of Chairman Lee Ki-heung for a second term. The Sports Fair Committee held a subcommittee on the 4th and conducted a first review to discuss whether Chairman Lee Ki-heung would be eligible for a second term.
Chairman Lee Ki-heung was already notified of his suspension by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism on the 11th, the previous day.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism said, “In accordance with the Act on the Operation of Public Institutions, we urged the investigative agency to request and investigate Lee’s alleged misconduct, and suspended him from his duties.”
The government’s Joint Public Service Inspection Team conducted a survey of the Korean Sports Association and asked the National Police Agency’s National Investigation Headquarters to investigate eight people, including Chairman Lee Ki-heung, on charges of fraudulent hiring of employees (obstruction of work), requesting to sponsor goods (receiving money and other items), private use of sponsored goods (allegation), and wasting the sports association’s budget (delegation).
Chairman Lee was found to have unfairly ordered the relaxation of qualification requirements to hire his child’s friend as an employee of the national team’s athletes’ village in 2022. The inspection team also raised suspicions of embezzlement, saying Chairman Lee had used 63 million won worth of sponsored items, including 20 mobile phones. 먹튀검증
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism explained the background of Chairman Lee Ki-heung’s suspension, saying, “The Korean Sports Council is a public institution (other public institution) under the same law, and the chairman is an executive of a public institution.”
In response, Lee immediately rebelled against the move. On Wednesday morning, it was reported that Lee Ki-heung filed an injunction with the Seoul Administrative Court to suspend the suspension of his duties.
On the same day, Jeong Yeon-wook, a member of the National Assembly’s Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, strongly insisted on improving the FTC system, saying, “Is it fair to approve a chairman who has been suspended from his job?” and “It is a fabricated review by the Sports and Fair Trade Commission.”
In addition, Chung directly shot Lee Ki-heung, chairman of the Olympic Committee (IOC), who was absent from the standing committee on the 11th, saying, “The IOC consultation is unconditionally for official travel expenses,” and criticized, “This is a trick to avoid attending as a witness.”
Meanwhile, according to lawmaker Jeong Yeon-wook’s office, Chairman Lee Ki-heung, who did not attend the comprehensive audit on the 24th of last month due to the signing ceremony of the event, was found to have eaten with the athletes’ village staff until 10 p.m. after the event ended at around 5:30 p.m.
