Presidential Chief of Staff Kang Hoon-sik orders steps to curb favoritism in highway rest stops

Kang Hoon-sik, the presidential chief of staff, on Monday ordered steps to recover improper gains and refer suspected violations for investigation following controversy over a group of retired Korea Expressway Corp. employees operating highway rest stops.
 
He also instructed the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport to conduct a comprehensive inspection of all public institutions and draw up measures to prevent preferential treatment for former officials.
 
Kang made the remarks during a senior aides meeting at Cheong Wa Dae on Monday, according to a written briefing by deputy spokesperson Ahn Gwi-ryeong.
 
Citing cases in which the retirees’ group, Doseonghoe, operated highway rest stops unrelated to its founding purpose and distributed what he described as excessive profits, Kang called it “an act that abandoned the responsibilities of a public institution.”
 
He also directed the Ministry of Economy and Finance to check all public institutions for similar cases and prepare measures to prevent a recurrence.
 
Kang separately ordered stronger measures against illegal online gambling by youths. Citing a 2025 survey by the Korea Center on Gambling Problems, he said about 157,000 youths — 4% of all adolescents — had experienced illegal gambling.
 
He warned it was a “threat to social safety” that could go beyond addiction to lead to dropping out of school, family conflict and secondary crimes.
 
Kang said a “youth gambling self-reporting system” being run by eight provincial and metropolitan police agencies, including the Daejeon Metropolitan Police Agency, was judged to significantly reduce repeat gambling. He asked the National Police Agency to actively review expanding the program nationwide.
 
He also instructed the National Police Agency, the Education Ministry and other related agencies to devise specific steps to raise self-reporting, including reduced penalties or lighter school discipline.