Gov't orders each agency to refer civil organizations misusing government subsidies for probe

By Kim Han-joo

SEOUL, June 7 (Yonhap) -- Government Policy Coordination Minister Bang Moon-kyu instructed all government agencies Wednesday to promptly request an investigation or an audit into suspected corruption involving subsidies to civil organizations.

The instruction came after the Office for Government Policy Coordination earlier released the result of an audit of government subsidies given to about 12,000 civil organizations and found a total of 1,865 cases of irregularities involving about 31.4 billion won (US$24 million).

"Stern measures are necessary for offenders," Bang said during a meeting of the audit officers of all 47 government agencies. He urged the agencies to refer such cases to formal investigations or state audits depending on the severity of the misuse.

The audit officers discussed several follow-up measures, including the recovery of government subsidies, exclusion of the implicated organizations from government-funded projects for a period of two to five years and public disclosure of the list of violators.

Bang highlighted the need for regulatory improvements to effectively monitor the financial flows of such organizations and ultimately eradicate the misappropriation of government funds.

khj@yna.co.kr
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