As President-elect Park Geun-hye vowed to be the president for the low and middle-income groups, one of the key economic policies her administration plans to implement involves consumer protection and micro credit financing.

In her broader economic democratization agenda that aims for equality of opportunity irrespective of economic status, Park sets out to create a control tower, or an executive branch of sorts, to focus on supporting and protecting the middle class.

Various policy suggestions made include streamlining or consolidating dispersed functions of state-run credit financing and consumer protection units.

Park’s policy paper said the administration would need to create a single unit, possibly under the wing of the financial regulatory body, to strengthen consumer protection against malpractices by financial companies.

“There has not been proper regulatory enforcement against predatory lending to individuals,” the paper said.

The plan also calls for tougher measures to safeguard consumers against illegal sales of financial products and debtors against usury from private moneylenders and loan sharks.

Park’s transition team, which includes Rep. Lee Hyun-jae of the ruling Saenuri Party, is expected to look into this matter that also concerns building a micro-financing platform for the middle class.

Rep. Lee, who is an expert on policymaking for small and medium-size enterprises and has a Ph.D. in business administration, is leading the team’s subcommittee that will deal with economic issues concerning small firms and the middle class.

Having served as the chief of Korea’s Small and Medium Business Administration between 2006 and 2008, and a policymaker under the Roh Moo-hyun administration, Lee is expected to coordinate policies and measures in line with Park’s vision of encouraging “100 percent of the people to pursue happiness.”

With conglomerates such as Samsung and Hyundai Motor becoming more economically powerful while minority shareholders and consumers fall victim to illicit and unfair acts by corporate owners or large shareholders, the president-elect suggested the importance of implementing stronger preventive measures.

The fallout of savings banks due to mismanagement and malpractices by owners last year was one of the key concerns, for instance, that prompted the president-elect to introduce a policy that strengthens evaluations of the eligibility of the largest shareholders of all financial companies for consumer protection.

Unfair competition among conglomerates and their affiliates is another pressing matter as the big businesses dominate the market and invade niche business territories of small enterprises.

As Park seeks to make small and medium-sized companies the driving force of the economy and job creation, her transition team is examining plans that can help boost their capabilities.

Small and medium enterprises’ exports accounted for about 20 percent of the total in 2011, according to her policy paper.

She suggested that Korea needs to increase their “negotiation power against conglomerates,” as well as develop them to be global players for sustained growth.

Park’s transition team is expected to implement policies that include supporting SMEs’ research and development, and lessening their tax burden.

“We will pursue economic democratization that seeks to help the economically weak,” Park said.

By Park Hyong-ki (hkp@heraldcorp.com)