Probe demanded into shady loan

The spokesman of the Grand National Party, Kwon Chul-Hyun, said Monday that the reported case of huge illegal loans from Hanvit Bank was snowballing into a major scandal. The chief suspect in the loan scandal, Park Hye-Ryong, is one of the close relatives -- equal to a nephew, not remote kin-- of Culture and Tourism Minister Park Jie-Won, Kwon said.

According to the opposition party spokesman, the brother of the chief suspect, who once was on the staff of the Chong Wa Dae presidential office, had been a private aide to Minister Park. Only a thorough investigation into the financial irregularity could establish the moral integrity of the incumbent government, Kwon asserted.

Kong Jong-Sik kong@donga.com