VietNamNet Bridge - Many managers of state-owned corporations have gone abroad recently for health care or training courses. Some of them have lost contact with their enterprises. 

The common characteristic of the managers is that they are or were the heads of unprofitable enterprises which have incurred losses of trillions of dong.

Some years ago, in his position as Director General of PetroVietnam Construction Corporation (PVC), Trinh Xuan Thanh showed irresponsibility and negligence in the leadership and management of the corporation’s operation, and violated legal regulations on business administration, resulting in the big loss of nearly VND3.2 trillion.

When the police was still making investigation on his wrongdoings, Thanh asked for the permission to go abroad for medical treatment and he has not come back so far. 

The Ministry of Public Security has put the case into prosecution and issued an arrest warrant domestically and internationally for him.

In a similar case, Vu Dinh Duy, who was the head of Dinh Vu Hai Phong, a large polyester plant which incurred a loss of VND1.7 trillion, suddenly left for medical treatment overseas. 

Duy was reported leaving Vietnam on October 22 under the guise of overseas medical treatment and has yet to return. The immigration agency confirmed that Duy is not in Vietnam.

On October 10, 2016, Le Chung Dung, deputy general director of PV Power, asked for 15 days of leave. After that, he asked for permission to attend a training course at SP Jain School of Management in Singapore for six months.

PV Power rejected the proposal. However, Dung has not turned up.

Many other big bosses of state-owned enterprises also fled the country after their wrongdoings were discovered.

Duong Chi Dung, former chair of Vinalines, the nation’s leading shipping firm, is a typical example. Hearing that the police issued an arrest warrant for causing serious economic consequences, Dung went abroad and was only arrested five months later.

The other big names include Giang Kim Dat from Vinashin, who has been arrested. 

Meanwhile, Trinh Van Thao, former director of PVC-ME, who fled in 2012, still has not been arrested.

MOIT has taken action to tighten personnel management at state-owned corporations belonging to the ministry, asking corporations to report cases of sick leave or unusual personal actions or things. 

It has also instructed agencies to tighten management over the use of passports by the managers of large economic groups.

Under current law, governing bodies such as MOIT only can dismiss officials as it did with Vu Dinh Duy, while big bosses continue to have citizenship until their wrongdoings are proven. This was fully exploited by Vu Dinh Duy and Le Chung Dung when they fled the country.

Luong Bang