Representative Lee Jeong-heon of the Democratic Party of Korea, a member of the National Assembly's Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee, pointed out that there is potential for a conflict of interest as circumstances have emerged indicating that Jung Woo-sung, president of the Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Creativity (KOFAC) appointed during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration, was involved in projects of the university where he previously worked.

President Jung ran as a People Power Party candidate for the Pyeongtaek-B constituency in Gyeonggi Province in the 2024 general election but was defeated, and was appointed to a three-year term as president of the foundation in November of the same year.

Rep. Lee stated, "Since President Jung Woo-sung took office, the scale of POSTECH's projects has grown," adding, "The annual commissioned project budget for POSTECH increased by approximately 27.7 percent from 1.88 billion won in 2024 to 2.4 billion won in 2025."

Rep. Lee said, "The problem is that circumstances have emerged showing that even after taking office, President Jung Woo-sung was involved in project agreements and contracts of POSTECH, his former university."

Under the current Conflict of Interest Prevention Act for Public Officials, if an official performs duties related to an institution where they were employed within two years prior to their appointment, they are required to report private conflicts of interest and apply for recusal.

Rep. Lee explained, "We found that President Jung Woo-sung engaged in related duties without submitting a separate report or application for recusal."

In response to these allegations, the Korea Foundation for the Advancement of Science and Creativity stated to Rep. Lee Jeong-heon's office, "Although there were practical inadequacies in the conflict of interest prevention procedures, the project selection was conducted transparently," adding that "the basic plan for the Digital Saessak project was also a procedure continued from the predecessor's tenure."

Rep. Lee Jeong-heon emphasized, "The Ministry of Science and ICT must thoroughly investigate these allegations, including whether there was a violation of conflict-of-interest prevention obligations, as well as the project selection and approval process."