The Fair Trade Commission, the nation’s top antitrust organization whose main job is to ensure fair competition in the markets, is fretting over independent candidate Ahn Cheol-soo’s ideas to install a presidential office for keeping chaebol in check. 

As Ahn announced earlier this week, the committee would be installed directly under the presidential office for efficiency’s sake -- meaning it would be designed so the president could keep tabs on all committee operations.

For the FTC, this could mean that it would be stripped of its responsibilities and authority.

It will start out as a presidential committee, but it will naturally begin to gain more power as the president will be directly involved, and if the committee is in charge of chaebol, the next step will be to broaden its horizons to other related areas, such as the subcontractors who are contracted by the conglomerates, then to yet more issues, such as mutual growth policies,” said one FTC official on the condition of anonymity.

Mutual growth policies are those by the government to create a more level playing ground for small and mid-sized firms.

The FTC had played a central role in the project until now.

Bashing the conglomerates is Ahn’s central election pledge, and he has now it in print. The seven top pledges include enacting tightened laws against all illegal activities committed by owner families, keeping the chaebol away from competing with mom-and-pop stores and banning conglomerates from acquiring too much debt.

Ahn also is calling for the fair trade law to be renovated to better protect the rights of smaller firms and consumers, while rearranging the financial authorities.

The is to address the persisting criticism that local fair trade laws were drafted and revised in favor of conglomerates who lobby the government.

Fines, for instance, fail utterly in subduing companies because 90 percent of the time, they win the ensuing administrative litigations they routinely issue against the government because the laws are written in the corporate sector’s advantage, experts say. Victory means no fines. In fact, the government ends up reimbursing the companies for their legal expenses.  

The FTC is also under fire for placing more priority on its own well-being, rather than the good of the public.

The officials are worried only about their own necks, which is why they fear Ahn’s ideas for the committee,” said one industry watcher, speaking anonymously.

At the beginning of the Lee Myung-bak administration, the FTC had appeared close to its demise when the incoming government said it would consider reducing and downgrading the organization.

Currently, the committee chairman is of minister level and can sit in on all official Cabinet meetings.  




By Kim Ji-hyun
(jemmie@heraldcorp.com)

<한글 기사>


공정위, 안철수식 재벌개혁위원회 두려워 


공정거래위원회가 떨고 있다.

무소속 안철수 후보의 재벌개혁위원회 때문이라고 관계자들이 전했다.

안철수 후보의 주요공약 중 하나가 대통령 직속으로 재벌개혁위원회를 만드는 것이다. 여타 기관에 맡기기보다, 직접 재벌 개혁을 챙기겠다는 심산이다. 이에 따라 공정거래위원회는 상대적으로 역할과 권한이 대폭 줄어들 것으로 염려하고 있다는 것이 관계자들의 얘기다.

출발은 재벌개혁이지만, 결국 하도급업체 관리부터 동반성장까지 모두 신설되는 재벌개혁위원회에서 가져가지 않겠냐는 것이다.

이에 앞서 이명박 정권 출범 당시에도 공정거래위원회를 청단위로 강등시키는 문제를 놓고 어려움을 겪었던 경험이 있다.

일각에서는 공정거래위원회가 본연의 업무를 잊은 채, 본인들 밥그릇만 챙긴다는 비난도 일고 있다.