Today the Người Lao Động printed an
interview with Đỗ Quang Trung, head of the Interior Ministry. Interesting article. The best part is this question (all translation is my own):
"Có dư luận nói rằng chức thứ trưởng “chạy” hết 8 tỉ đồng, chức bộ trưởng hết 15 tỉ đồng, Bộ trưởng có nghe thông tin này?"
(Minister, have you heard the public assertions that to be a deputy minister requires over 8 billion VND, and becoming a minister needs over 15 billion VND?)
Answer:
"Việc chạy chức chạy quyền có dư luận lâu rồi chứ không riêng ở Bộ GTVT. Công tác cán bộ không một cá nhân nào quyết định mà phải là tập thể. Ngay việc Thủ tướng quyết định không phải qua Ban Bí thư thì cũng phải lấy ý kiến các ban Đảng, các cơ quan tham gia. Đây cũng là một cách khắc phục việc chạy chức chạy quyền. Nếu giao cho một cá nhân nào quyết định thì cực kỳ nguy hiểm."
(This opinion has been around for anyone in office for awhile, not just for the Ministry of Transportation & Traffic. An officer's work is not the decision of one person but a group of people. The choice of a deputy minister is not just the committee of the Secretary's decision, but they also get the opinions of other party committees, and other organizations participate too. This is only one way to check abuses of position and power. It is extremely dangerous to entrust one person with all decision-making power.)
Way to beat around the bush, Mr. Đỗ. So I'm supposed to understand that the $500k USD or $1 mil. USD needed to be a deputy minister or minister must be shared with many people instead of given to just one person, right? Ah, I see...
3 comments:
Haha... That's a good one.
This PMU-18 scandal is shocking, but not surprising, isn't it? What are people saying on the streets? The VN press (Tuoi Tre, Thanh Nien) seems to be doing a good job.
BTW, just in case you haven't seen it, here's a good page with links to VN stuff: http://viet-studies.org/culture.htm
One anonymouse reader said "Damn, Triet! You got balls!"
I like the comment, but I must clarify--Vietpundit brought up a cogent point--"my balls" are bigger because the current new climate allows it to be so.
LOL.
Ok, PMU-18 is not surprising at all. We talk about it all the time in the streets. And yes, the newspapers, especially the Tuoi Tre, are doing a good job covering it.
I will make that a separate post.
Vietnam's press isn't free, but this blew up so much, that the government has to allow comments and criticism, or face a larger backlash.
Also, from what I hear on the streets, my sentiments are not mine alone, either.
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