It’s called an “audit” and witnesses are called in, but those on the receiving end of the questions are barely allowed any time to answer, and it soon becomes clear it’s more about offering the “right” answers and less about the truth.

The right answer, in most cases, is to agree with whatever the lawmakers have to say. When this doesn’t happen, things can get ugly.

The local imported car sector learned this when the CEOs took a stand for the first time in Korea. Now, some of them may be facing a pending lawsuit, which a legislator has threatened.

But the question remains: Who is really at fault?

According to many who attended the sessions, the audit was nothing more than an opportunity to press the witnesses to confess they were over-charging Korean consumers and fixing prices. The lawmakers also appeared to have scant knowledge about the industry.

“Some of the witnesses are people I know very well, and they seemed to have been taken aback by how unorganized the sessions were, and how the questions were more like statements than questions,” said an industry source who declined to be identified.

Later on, Kim Hyo-joon, CEO of BMW Korea, said its auto parts are cheaper than in the U.S. or Japan, and he has the facts to support his claims.

The market share of imported cars in Korea stands at about 12 percent, and prices have become much more affordable. Despite the evolution, there’s still some element of xenophobia toward the sector.

Part of this may have to do with the fact that they are still more expensive here than in Japan or the U.S. Porsches, for example, cost about 20 percent more on average in Korea.

But for now, it seems some Koreans would resent the imported brands even if they become cheaper here than wherever else they are sold.

What’s more unfortunate is that these groundless apprehensions are great fodder for lawmakers who are aching to look good, if at the cost of ruining someone else’s reputation.

The foreign CEOs should remember this and next time be more careful about how they and their companies are represented.

Last but not least, they are recommended to take along interpreters who really know what they’re doing and how the system works so things don’t get lost in translation, as has been the case in the latest round of parliamentary audits.

By Kim Ji-hyun (jemmie@heraldcorp.com)