Liberal presidential hopeful Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo said Thursday if elected he will grant more power to the state fair trade watchdog and improve corporate governance to break corruptive relations between the government and large businesses.
"The top task for national reforms is to root out the corruptive links between the government and businesses," Ahn of the People's Party said in a statement.
Rep. Ahn Cheol-soo of the People's Party (Yonhap)
He said he will establish a fair market order by expanding the role of the Fair Trade Commission.
"For the commission to focus on its proper duties without being swayed by those in power, it should be granted more independence and power," the lawmaker added.
Ahn said the number of members of the commission's standing committee should be increased to seven from the current five, while allowing them to serve five years instead of three.
The potential candidate also vowed to introduce more stringent punitive damages for economic crimes committed by conglomerates.
He pledged to improve the governance system of local family-controlled conglomerates, claiming outside directors of such firms are no more than a rubber stamp club.
"As the heads of the conglomerates designate figures who share regional or academic backgrounds with them as outside directors, they fail to fulfill their original role as a watchdog," Ahn said. (Yonhap)