Samsung Electronics, Friday, said its chairman Lee Sang-hoon, who had been convicted and imprisoned for intentionally damaging union activities, resigned from the South Korean company.
The resignation comes less than two years after Lee’s appointment, which led to the first-time dismissal of the chairman and CEO position in an effort to improve transparency and independence, at the world’s largest memory chip manufacturer in the wake of a corruption scandal involving an heir to the Gay Way Lee group.
“Samsung is experiencing a major setback in its endeavor to strengthen its board of directors, and will need a new face to make a move,” said Pak Jo-john, head of research firm CI or Score, adding that the move was widely expected as Lee Sang Hoon was in prison.
Samsung said that who will follow me in the post will be appointed in the near future, and maybe chosen from among the rest of its board of directors, which consists of 6 external directors and three internal executives. Among them are 3 chief executives of Samsung’s components, phones, and consumer electronics sectors.
Lee Sang-hoon was sentenced to one and a half years in prison in December, for intentionally damaging legal union activities. Lee appealed the decision.
The Chairman of Samsung’s Board of Directors does not engage in daily operating activities, but he chairs a Board meeting to study and approve major business decisions including investment plans.
The company is expected to hold the next shareholders meeting in March.
