Seoul: The National Election Commission (NEC) announced Tuesday that it is actively working to annul the appointments of 10 individuals implicated in an alleged preferential hiring scheme, including the children of senior NEC officials.
According to Yonhap News Agency, this development is a response to a February report by the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI), which found that NEC officials had repeatedly engaged in soliciting jobs for their family members. Following an internal investigation, the NEC took the step of suspending 11 individuals from their duties and referred these cases to the police for further investigation.
Last week, the NEC initiated disciplinary hearings by sending summons notices to those involved. As part of this process, one individual has already been dismissed. In addition, the agency has taken disciplinary action against 16 employees who played a role in facilitating the illegal hiring, which included issuing dismissals.
Earlier this year, the NEC undertook a comprehensive inspection of all 291 recruitment rounds for experienced employees conducted since 2013. This review uncovered 878 violations of regulations, underscoring the extent of the hiring irregularities within the organization.