People Power Party (PPP) lawmakers of the parliamentary Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee held an emergency press conference on March 2 and fiercely criticized the KT board of directors for recommending only KT insiders as CEO candidates, accusing them of forming “a cartel of interests” and “a league of their own.” Some politicians suggested that the ruling PPP was trying to have one of their own people as the next CEO of KT. The criticism seemed to have taken the telecommunications company by surprise, but KT is expected to appoint its new CEO as scheduled.

The PPP members of the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee held a press conference on Thursday and criticized the KT board of directors, which announced the four nominees for the chief executive officer of KT, soon to undergo interviews, on February 28. The PPP legislators said, “Among the total 33 applicants, they only selected four former and incumbent executives of KT, turning the recruitment of the next CEO into ‘a league of their own.’” They argued that the KT board and certain insiders looked after each other to secure their interests and referred to the tactic as a typical method used to maintain a “cartel of interests.” The lawmakers said, “It is no different from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions’ attempt to dominate MBC,” and demanded KT to immediately stop the recruitment process.

In a press briefing at the Office of the President in Yongsan Thursday, a senior official said, “When it comes to companies with dispersed ownership that have a big impact on the people’s economic activities, the governance structure is very important.” He continued and said, “They need to ensure fair and transparent governance. If they don’t, moral hazards are bound to appear and eventually the people will suffer the loss.” A key official in the presidential office said over the phone Thursday, “Fairness and transparency in the process (of recruiting the next CEO of KT) is important.” The two figures hinted at problems in the recommendation of CEO candidates by the KT board.

Previously, KT had agreed to have the current CEO, Ku Hyeon-mo, serve a second time, but Ku refused the second term after pressure from the ruling PPP and the government. The company reopened the recruitment process from square one. On February 28, the KT board of directors selected Park Yoon-young, former president of the KT corporate division; Lim Hun-mun, former president of KT Mass; Yun Kyoung-lim, president of the group transformation division; and Shin Soo-jung, senior executive vice president of the KT enterprise business as the final candidates. Again the PPP and the presidential office are voicing criticism pressuring the company.

Inside the political circle, people suspect that it is because Yoon Jin-shik, a former minister of trade, industry and energy who was part of President Yoon Suk-yeol’s presidential campaign, was excluded from the list of candidates. Legislator Park Sung-joong, the PPP secretary in the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee explained, “Whether it’s an insider or not, a person who can innovate KT is what the people want, but the four (candidates) all have a lot of problems.” Park argued, “Since the judging standards were all established under Ku Hyeon-mo, if they apply those standards as they are, an insider has the advantage. That is why none of the outside figures made the list.”

Apparently, KT was surprised and unprepared for the fierce criticism from the ruling PPP trying to pull the brakes in the midst of its CEO recruitment process. A KT representative said, “We are not ready to release an official statement,” and refused to comment. The company’s executives including Ku attended the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Spain and returned to Korea Thursday night.

The telecommunications company claims that it was simply the result of a review based on set standards that the final list of candidates eligible for interviews happened to include only former and incumbent executives. One person familiar with the situation inside KT said, “We did things according to the official process,” and asked, “What do they want us to do now?” Reportedly, the ruling party never directly expressed their support for a certain candidate during the recruitment process. Earlier on February 9, the KT board of directors announced the qualifications for CEO, “According to our articles of association, a candidate with a rich experience and knowledge of business and the economy, who has had successful experiences in corporate management, with the qualities and capabilities of a chief executive officer, and with expert knowledge and experience in the information and communications field.”

For now, there will be no changes to the company’s plans to proceed with the CEO recruitment process as scheduled. After the interview on March 7, the company will select the final candidate and appoint the new CEO in the general meeting of shareholders on the coming March 29 or 30. If things proceed as scheduled, the PPP and the presidential office will have to get the National Pension Service to lead a vote of no confidence in the general meeting.