The Ministry of Science and ICT is said to have finalized its recommendation for disciplinary action against Kang Heung-sik, head of the Pohang Accelerator Laboratory, after allegations of hiring irregularities and failure to report safety incidents were raised during last year's parliamentary inspection. Kang has denied the allegations and stated that he will file an appeal.
According to Yonhap News on the 2nd, the Ministry of Science and ICT has reported that most of the allegations against Kang were confirmed after auditing the Pohang Accelerator Laboratory and conveyed the findings to Pohang University of Science and Technology (POSTECH).
The Pohang Accelerator Laboratory is a research institution affiliated with POSTECH and is entirely funded by government contributions. Approximately 67.6 billion won is expected to be invested this year, and it operates large-scale national accelerator facilities including the Pohang Light Source and the 4th generation linear accelerator.
This audit began in August of last year when more than 100 employees of the laboratory petitioned through the National Petition Center, submitting complaints about Kang's alleged directive for improper hiring, failure to report safety incidents, and various other misconducts. The Ministry of Science and ICT had previously conducted an audit and communicated the results, including the recommendation for disciplinary action, but Kang initially expressed intention to resign and then reversed his decision to request a retrial. However, the objection was not accepted, and the final audit results were confirmed at the end of May.
The National Research Foundation of Korea (NRF) has also reportedly conducted a special evaluation of the shared research support project for synchrotron radiation and demanded the replacement of the designated research leader. The Ministry of Science and ICT stated that the results of the special evaluation are expected to be finalized at the upcoming program operation committee meeting.
POSTECH has formed a separate personnel committee to recommend disciplinary action against the audit subjects excluding the director, and the final decision is expected to be made in August.
In a phone call with Yonhap News, Kang said, "Even if the committee decides, there is an appeal process, and I will certainly appeal. I do not believe this is research misconduct and acknowledge that there were administrative errors, and I have made all the devices I initially aimed for. Not just me, but others who were subject to disciplinary action also feel somewhat wronged."