Activity by potential presidential candidate’s foundation may break law, NEC says


South Korea’s election watchdog is expected to ban the charity activities by a foundation being set up by Ahn Cheol-soo, a software entrepreneur-turned-professor, as he is considered a potential presidential candidate, officials said Monday.

“After looking into possible election law violations by the foundation, we have concluded that monetary contributions or donations made under the name of the Ahn Cheol-soo Foundation would be against the law,” a National Election Commission official said.

“It is illegal because it can be deemed that the monetary contributions provided under the name of the foundation are given by a potential candidate,” the official said.

The Election Law bans monetary contributions or donations aimed at swaying votes.

Ahn, who has yet to officially announce his plans to compete in this year’s presidential race, is nevertheless leading in nationwide polls among hopefuls in the opposition camp. He is also considered a serious challenger to Rep. Park Geun-hye, who is the top presidential contender for the ruling Saenuri Party.

In a poll released over the weekend, Ahn’s approval rating stood at 43.7 percent, much higher than other opposition party contenders. Park’s numbers reached 49.8 percent in the same poll conducted on 1,500 people across the country late last week.

The 49-year-old founder of AhnLab, South Korea’s biggest anti-virus software firm, and dean of the Graduate School of Convergence Science and Technology at Seoul National University, announced he would launch a charity foundation in February. Ahn said he would help fund the foundation by selling some of his stake in the anti-virus firm.

The foundation, however, has yet to be officially set up.

Initially the foundation was set to be created in late March, but the launch date was pushed back with no definitive date set at present. Ahn’s supporters said they are examining when to officially launch the foundation.

Regarding the probe, Rep. Shim Jae-chul, a four-term lawmaker for Saenuri, said earlier in the day that under article 112 of the country’s election law, presidential contenders can only be involved in public foundations or raising charity funds if the effort was launched four years before the election date.

“Since Ahn could become a candidate in the presidential election, using a newly created foundation to give donations clearly can be seen as breaking the law,” the lawmaker claimed.

The NEC said the foundation will be able to operate if the name is changed and Ahn stays away from the operation. It also said the foundation can only make contributions that are not related to Ahn in any way.

(From news reports)