[Edaily Reporter KIM JUNG YOU ] Shin Dong-ju (pictured), the eldest son of the late Shin Kyuk-ho, founder of Lotte Group, and former vice chairman of Lotte Holdings (currently chairman of SDJ Corporation), has once again failed in his attempt to return to management. This marks his 12th failure.

According to Lotte Corporation(004990)on the 29th, Lotte Holdings rejected all three proposals put forward by former Vice Chairman Shin at its annual general meeting of shareholders held that day in Tokyo, Japan. Former Vice Chairman Shin had proposed not only his own appointment as a director but also an amendment to the articles of incorporation to prohibit individuals convicted of criminal offenses from serving as directors, as well as a motion to dismiss Chairman Shin Dong-bin. In contrast, the single proposal put forward by Lotte was approved.

Former Vice Chairman Shin’s camp stated, “We have warned of Lotte’s crisis through numerous shareholder proposals, but the board of directors has ignored these and turned a blind eye to management issues,” adding, “These proposals went beyond a simple change in management; they were measures intended to strengthen the responsibility and functions of the Lotte Holdings board of directors and enable the Lotte Group to return to its core values.”

They added, “We will continue our efforts to reform management and enhance transparency so that Lotte Group can regain the trust of the people of both South Korea and Japan.”

Since his dismissal as vice chairman in 2015, former Vice Chairman Shin has been proposing his own appointment as a director at the annual general meeting every year since 2016—for 12 years now—but his efforts have been unsuccessful every time. He holds a 1.77% stake in Lotte Holdings. Former Vice Chairman Shin was dismissed while serving as CEO of Lotte Service for, among other things, unauthorized filming of product displays at retail stores—despite opposition from the board of directors—and subsequently digitizing this footage as marketing data to sell it.

Subsequently, former Vice Chairman Shin filed a lawsuit against the company seeking damages, but a Japanese court dismissed the case. Former Vice Chairman Shin has sold all of his shares in Lotte Korea, securing 1.4 trillion won in funds. Last August, he purchased 400 million won worth of Lotte Corporation shares (0.01%) to file a shareholder derivative suit.