National Assembly delegates request clarification of Mr. Vo Kim Cu's responsibility

After Mr. Vo Kim Cu (National Assembly member, former Provincial Party Secretary, Chairman of Ha Tinh Provincial People's Committee) spoke up to the press about the Formosa incident, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Phuong (National Assembly member of Quang Binh province) requested that the authorities investigate and clarify these statements.

PV: Do you agree with Mr. Vo Kim Cu's statement?

Delegate Nguyen Ngoc Phuong:I also agree with some things, but there are also things that the authorities need to get involved in and clarify responsibilities. In particular, the authorities need to clarify whether the license is for 70 years or 50 years.

At the same time, it is necessary to clarify not only the marine environmental incident that occurred but also other environmental incidents, the management responsibility of the leaders of Ha Tinh province, for example, why did the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of a district dare to bury hundreds of tons of waste?

National Assembly Delegate Nguyen Ngoc Phuong

PV: What do you personally think of Mr. Cu's statement?

Delegate Nguyen Ngoc Phuong:Mr. Cu has now made a statement, the extent to which he admits personal responsibility in signing for Formosa to invest in Ha Tinh. In it, Mr. Cu said he wanted to create a breakthrough in Ha Tinh's economic development, creating jobs.

In his view, regret is also not foreseeing all situations that occur. Any problem related to responsibility, within control but still related to responsibility must be handled.

PV: When Ha Tinh leaders called for investment, they expected too much about economic change. What do you think about this thinking, is it lacking in scientific basis?

Delegate Nguyen Ngoc Phuong:Not only Ha Tinh leaders but also the Government leaders and people want to improve the environment, attract investment to develop the economy, that is a legitimate need. Currently, some provinces, typically Ha Tinh, in attracting investment focus on economic development without paying attention to the environment, not paying attention to the consequences.

PV: In your opinion, is it serious that Mr. Cu has "crossed the licensing barrier" for such a long time?

Delegate Nguyen Ngoc Phuong:If Mr. Cu has crossed the line, according to his explanation, if the law allows it, then it is okay. Crossing the line when the law does not stipulate or allow it, then that mistake is extremely serious and must be considered.

PV: Does the Central Inspection Commission have to get involved in this matter?

Delegate Nguyen Ngoc Phuong:At that time, Mr. Vo Kim Cu was under the management of the Central Economic Committee and the Politburo, so the Committee had to clarify.

PV: There is a view that "all the blame falls on Mr. Vo Kim Cu", because there is a whole system behind it and he was not the only one who decided the Formosa issue, so how should we assign responsibility?

Delegate Nguyen Ngoc Phuong:In my opinion, this issue is related to the whole system, not Mr. Cu. Mr. Cu is not the decision maker and he alone cannot decide for the whole organization, system, and ministries.

That decision was correct, but the environmental issue was not assessed, leading to consequences. When setting up the project, he did not foresee everything, due to his capacity and haste, and may have "ignored" some things, allowing the factory to violate, such as the discharge pipe being placed deep underground and not inspected or controlled... then that is Mr. Cu's responsibility, not the responsibility of others.

According to VOV