Audits uncover 167 violations; province vows zero tolerance for gapjil, verbal abuse and budget misconduct
Gangwon Special Self-Governing Province Governor Woo Sang-ho on Wednesday told provincial staff to "keep managing integrity until residents can feel it."
Woo made the remarks while chairing a review meeting on the province's 2026 anti-corruption and integrity initiatives at the provincial government building that afternoon.
It was the first integrity policy review meeting the governor has presided over since the new provincial administration took office.
The province said audits had identified 167 cases of illegal or improper conduct, all of which have been corrected or improved, and that routine audits and contract reviews had eliminated unnecessary or inflated budget items totaling 15.9 billion won ($11.6 million).
Going forward, the province plans to regularly update information on companies subject to restrictions on discretionary contracts and build a system that automatically cross-checks that data against contract and expenditure records to head off preferential contracting before it occurs.
"Moving up in the overall integrity rankings matters, but what matters more is that residents and staff genuinely feel the provincial administration and organization are fair," Woo said. "Gapjil, verbal abuse, and misconduct in personnel and budget matters must not be overlooked, no matter how minor."
He added that senior officials must take personal responsibility for ensuring that this year's integrity initiatives and institutional reforms are completed without delay, and that fair personnel management, accountable budget operations and employee protection systems work in practice — not just on paper. "Manage it to the end so that it translates into change that residents and staff can actually feel, not just results on a document," he said.
With chuseok approaching, Woo also instructed each department to strictly guard against the improper receipt of gifts or entertainment and any lapse in workplace discipline.
The province will run an "Integrity Week" from Sept. 13 to 19, featuring joint public-private integrity events, regional integrity education sessions and mock-reporting drills to spread a culture of integrity across the civil service and the wider community.
The province outlined the efforts and results it has achieved in building an integrity culture. Drawing on last year's integrity assessment, an internal staff diagnostic conducted this year and consulting by an outside specialist firm, it said it has pursued a prevention-focused integrity policy centered on blocking discretionary interference, strengthening accountability and improving organizational culture.
Around the time of elections, the province said it established and implemented a plan to support fair job performance and strengthen employee protection, raising accountability standards and reinforcing reporting, counseling and staff protection systems so that civil servants could handle their duties by the book even when faced with improper requests or outside pressure.
After the election, it added, the province proactively briefed the provincial government and its affiliated agencies on integrity risks and compliance standards in areas including appointments, committee operations, contracts, budgets and project execution that could arise during the transition to the new administration, getting ahead of potential corruption and favoritism risks.
The province also said it pursued organizational culture improvements to strengthen managerial accountability and boost staff participation in integrity education. Leadership training for section-chief-level managers and above was conducted to sharpen their understanding of civil servants' conduct and roles and their capacity to address organizational culture problems such as gapjil.
A Gangwon-wide integrated integrity live event combining integrity education with a performance drew 702 participants from the province, cities and counties, the provincial office of education and public-sector affiliated organizations, expanding interest in and engagement with integrity education.
The province said it is also strengthening integrity administration through direct public participation.
A QR-based "integrity feedback system" has been deployed at public-facing service points covering civil complaints, subsidies and permits, allowing residents to submit opinions at any time; the feedback collected is used to improve work procedures. The system has been recognized as a model for other cities and provinces.
The meeting concluded that this year's integrity policies are broadly on track, and that ongoing reviews of fair hiring for non-civil-service positions and unfinished institutional reform tasks will be carried through to actual changes in regulations and work procedures.
abc@heraldcorp.com
