A SOUTH Korean man who had been fined $8,000 for lying that he had a university degree to get a job here, had his sentence increased to a two-month jail term yesterday.

Chief Justice Yong Pung How accepted the prosecution's argument that the degree had been crucial to Kang Seong Yong, 40, getting his job as a sales manager. He worked here for four years.

Deputy Public Prosecutor Christopher Ong also pointed out that Kang's credentials could not be verified earlier in view of the sheer volume of applications for employment pass received by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) each year.

Kang had falsely stated in his employment pass application in June 2000 that he holds a degree in business administration-accounting from Korea University. The father of two boys has only a high school diploma.

He made the same false declarations when he renewed his pass in June 2001 and June 2003. But he was found out when MOM checked with the university in June 2003.

District Judge See Kee Oon had noted this delay when deciding against giving Kang the usual jail term last August. He said MOM could have prevented the offence by acting 'more expeditiously and proactively' to verify Kang's qualifications.

At the appeal yesterday, DPP Ong said the ministry processed 149,320 such applications in 2002 and 136,844 in 2003. The number for last year, up till September, was 106,942.

Sixty-eight people were convicted each year in 2002 and 2003 for falsely declaring their educational qualifications.

So the ministry's efforts to verify the credentials must be put in context of the volume of applications it receives, said DPP Ong.

He was replying to CJ Yong who asked why the ministry had accepted Kang's credentials without checking with the university.

DPP Ong also said the district judge was wrong in concluding that Kang could have obtained the employment pass based on his actual educational qualifications.

Kang's supposed degree was a 'key criterion' in him being able to work here as a sales manager for a medical hall, liasing with Korean tourists, travel agencies and the Korean travel industry.

But defence lawyer K. Mathialahan said Kang's case was similar to three previous cases in which people were fined for submitting forged documents to obtain an employment pass.

Among the cases was that of businesswoman Lai Yu Jing, 41, who had lied in 2001 that she had a degree in accountancy. Her original three-week jail term was reduced to a $2,000 fine after an appeal before CJ Yong in July 2003.

Dismissing the defence's arguments, CJ Yong said he had a 'responsibility to uphold the law'. He also ordered that the $8,000 fine be returned to Kang.