The hidden corners of 'collusion' and sharing of spoils?

Mr. Truong Quang Nghia, in his capacity as the newly appointed Secretary of the Da Nang City Party Committee, recently shared some noteworthy insights on a "hot" issue that every citizen is concerned about: BOT projects – an important matter managed by the Ministry of Transport, where Mr. Nghia was the "commander" not long ago.

Speaking candidly during a meeting with constituents, Mr. Nghia said: "After reviewing and evaluating BOT projects, there are two major decisions I made during my time as Minister of Transport: temporarily suspending BOT projects for review and final settlement. The final settlement will reveal some issues related to BOT projects, and who owns the project – yours or mine – will be exposed."

Mr. Nghia's statement was in response to a voter's question: "Are there vested interests in BOT projects?" This voter also quoted another person who bet that "if there are no vested interests (in BOT projects), I'll die immediately."

Those were indeed direct questions, and the answers were very… honest! Specifically, Mr. Nghia stated: “The shortcomings in the implementation of BOT projects stem from the haste of the Ministry of Transport, from a trend-following approach, and from building a personal image. And I'll say it straight: there are vested interests involved.”

The new Secretary of the Da Nang City Party Committee, former Minister Nghia, firmly asserted that there is corruption, "personal interests," and elements of "my" and "her" in BOT projects. He also stated frankly that BOT projects are mainly built on "empty hands"—borrowing money from banks rather than mobilizing social resources as intended by this model.

What could be more disheartening than a former leader of a sector being forced to expose the corruption and embezzlement occurring in his "old workplace" like this!

Even though he only served as Minister of Transport for a little over a year, Mr. Nghia bears some responsibility for the corruption within the sector he managed. And when he openly admitted to the public that corruption existed in the transport sector, only to find that the situation remained unresolved after his departure and handover to his successor, it shows just how powerful "special interest groups" can be!

I recall that, when he was still serving as Minister, Mr. Nghia also made quite a few statements related to this long-running issue:

On April 14, 2016, in an interview with the press after assuming the position of Minister of Transport, Mr. Truong Quang Nghia said: "In investment work, we will maintain the principle that every penny of the people's money must be carefully considered." Later, in June 2016, during a meeting with the leaders of Da Nang City, he declared: "The implementation of BOT projects should focus on new roads, avoiding single-lane roads and BOT routes that leave people with no other options."

Frankly speaking, those ideas are nothing new. That concept emerged 22 years ago (or more) during the time of Prime Minister Vo Van Kiet. Then-Deputy Prime Minister Phan Van Khai rejected a proposal from a group of investors from Dubai to build Highway 5 from Hanoi to Hai Phong under the BOT (Build-Operate-Transfer) model, only agreeing if the BOT project ran parallel to Highway 5 to ensure the public had a choice.

However, for a leader to be mindful of the people's finances, like former Minister Truong Quang Nghia, is already very commendable! It's regrettable that, in reality, according to the State Audit Office's assessment, "most national highways and bridges have become the sole route for BOT investors, leaving people with no alternative routes. The projects have become monopolies, and the investors have a monopoly on collecting tolls." The minimum distance between toll stations on the same route is 70km, but 33 out of 88 toll stations do not meet this requirement.

What started as a well-intentioned policy has become a private playground for a segment of "public servants," a pie of profit for these parties while the people bear the burden of the fees. However, who are these vested interests, who is the "big brother," and who is the "little brother"? The people desperately need a clearer and fairer answer.

BOT – that's just one aspect of the policy. How many other hidden aspects, how many other policies are there where they collude and share the spoils?

According to Dan Tri