U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Thursday denied having close relations with deceased businessman Sung Woan-jong, who has claimed he gave large sums of money to prominent Korean politicians.
Sung, formerly head of Keangnam Enterprises and a lawmaker for the ruling Saenuri Party, was found dead last week in an apparent suicide. He was being investigated for corruption and embezzlement.
In an interview with local newspaper Kyunghyang Shinmun shortly before his death, he claimed he was framed due to his alleged friendship with Ban.
“This case has nothing to do with me. I’ve met (Sung) at official events and I knew him, but not well,” Ban said in a recent interview. “I have no interest in Korean politics, and I barely have time for it. I’m perplexed, since I’ve made this perfectly clear.”
Sung has accused Prime Minister Lee Wan-koo of directing a corruption probe. He claims he and his company were unfairly targeted due to the prime minister’s concerns about a close relationship with Sung and Ban.
Sung had reportedly contacted several politicians to raise support for Ban while his brother had worked for Keangnam Enterprises. Ban, a former foreign minister, has often been considered a prospective candidate for the next presidency, although he has officially denied he has such ambitions.
In the aftermath of Sung’s accusation, Lee and seven others on the supposed corruption list have come under pressure. Lee, in particular, has received mounting calls to resign from opposition lawmakers and even some Saenuri members.
The prosecution, which is investigating the graft scandal, has reportedly found another list of 14 politicians suspected to have received money from Sung. The list reportedly includes both members of the ruling and opposition parties.
By Yoon Min-sik and news reports (minsikyoon@heraldcorp.com)
