Lee Chun-seok, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea who serves as the chairperson of the National Assembly's Law and Judiciary Committee, is embroiled in a controversy over the transaction of hidden stocks.
According to The Fact on the 5th, the lawmaker attended the National Assembly's plenary session on the afternoon of the 4th and conducted a partitioning transaction of Naver stocks using his mobile phone. He also checked the bid prices in real-time and modified his orders. The Fact reported that Lee's personal asset records showed investments in Naver, Kakao Pay, and LG CNS.
The issue is that the owner of the stock account that the lawmaker was checking was a person surnamed Cha. Cha is Lee's aide.
On March 27, a review of Lee Chun-seok's asset disclosure status released by the Public Official Ethics Committee showed that there were no stocks owned by him or his family. The investment amount in Cha's stock account that Lee transacted exceeded 100 million won.
The Financial Real Name Act strictly restricts transactions of hidden stocks. Those engaging in hidden transactions for illegal purposes face imprisonment of up to five years or a fine of up to 50 million won.
ChosunBiz attempted to contact Lee Chun-seok and his office multiple times to hear their stance on the hidden stock transaction controversy, but they were unable to connect.
The opposition party immediately launched an offensive regarding the controversy over the lawmaker's hidden stock transactions. People Power Party's candidate for party leader, Joo Jin-woo, stated, "The Democratic Party's Lee Chun-seok is expected to be criminally charged today for violating the Financial Real Name Act and the Public Official Ethics Act," and criticized, "Hidden stock transactions are a serious crime that harms individual investors while violating the Financial Real Name Act."
Joo said, "Democratic Party Law and Judiciary Committee Chairperson Lee Chun-seok was caught on camera secretly conducting hidden stock transactions under a close aide's name. Since he directly engaged in hidden stock transactions, he has no excuse," and noted, "The intentional omission of hidden stocks from asset registration is a significant matter that could jeopardize his qualifications as a member of the National Assembly."
Kim Eun-hye, the deputy floor leader of the same party, pointed out, "The assistant, who is the owner of the relevant account, explained that 'the lawmaker mistakenly took the aide's mobile phone.' So, did he conduct stock transactions under the aide's name without permission?" questioning, "Is this the substance of fairness and livelihood that the Democratic Party speaks of?"
Han Dong-hoon, a former representative of the People Power Party, also remarked, "The Democratic Party regime has a lawmaker conduct a rapid hidden stock transaction during the plenary session to create a KOSPI of 5,000," adding, "Hidden transactions by influential politicians or senior public officials are particularly bad because they handle non-public advanced information that can influence stock prices."
The Democratic Party has also initiated an investigation into the matter. The party stated, "Representative Jeong Cheong-rae has instructed the Ethics Inspection Division to urgently investigate the allegations regarding Lee Chun-seok."