4 lawmakers have over 50 bln won in personal wealth: data

SEOUL, March 31 (Yonhap) -- Four sitting lawmakers have more than 50 billion won (US$38.4 million) in personal wealth, an annual parliamentary report showed Friday.

The four included Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo of the ruling People Power Party, who was formerly a medical doctor and a software entrepreneur.

Aside from the four, the remaining 292 lawmakers had declared an average of 2.52 billion won in personal assets as of the end of last year, according to the gazette compiled by the parliamentary ethics committee on public officials.

By amount, 7.4 percent owned assets worth below 500 million won, 18.2 percent owned assets with values ranging between 500 million won and 1 billion won, 35.1 percent owned assets with values ranging between 1 billion won and 2 billion won, 28 percent owned assets with values ranging between 2 billion won and 5 billion won, and 11.1 percent owned assets worth over 5 billion won.

More than 87 percent of lawmakers said their assets increased from a year earlier.

Under an anti-corruption law, senior officials at government agencies, the National Assembly, public institutions and national universities, as well as heads of local governments, councils and education offices are required to report the status of their assets to the committee once a year.

nyway@yna.co.kr
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