Stepping out the door, I ran into... the manager?

(Baonghean) - When my friend in Dong village told me the story, I thought it was a joke. After realizing it wasn't a joke, I thought it was a sarcastic remark. Poor me, all my guesses were completely wrong. It wasn't a joke, nor was it a sarcastic remark! My friend insisted it was true, which was shocking. It turns out that H – a motorbike taxi driver, who daily rides his old Dream motorbike right in front of the city's general hospital – is actually the director of four parent companies! Not only me, but everyone who heard the story of the owner of this "two-wheeled convertible" was... stunned! The rest were in a state of both admiration and envy.

How could one not be shocked, impressed, or feel envious! Clearly, he's both a motorbike taxi driver and a businessman – who in Dong village could do that? Where else in the world could you find someone like that? For a long time, training academies have produced superstars and supermodels, so how could H, with his outstanding abilities, not be a super-CEO?! It's said that Dong village even honored H as "Person of the Year." They started researching the unique background of the motorbike taxi driver. People gossiped about the exceptional talent of this hidden, brilliant, and multi-talented CEO. Secrets like "he didn't even finish second grade," and "he seems to still have some lingering schizophrenia," even complaining, "What kind of CEO doesn't even buy his wife a decent bicycle?"... These are the statements of the school of thought that, as the kids would say, is GATO (jealousy). Others exclaimed, "H is so talented!" Some even quipped, "Back in the day, my younger brother and I were close friends." “H’s paternal grandfather and my maternal grandmother were classmates”; “Later, when my daughter graduates, I’ll have to send her resume to H to help her find a job.” But perhaps the funniest thing is the information that the fundraising committee for the construction of the community center secretly put H on the list of “main sponsors.” Poor H, he didn’t know anything about it, and he didn’t have any assets to support it. They gave him alcohol, told him to sign some kind of paper, and he signed. After signing, he became a director. Once he became a director, he had to find customers to… work as a motorbike taxi driver. That’s it! Occasionally, once in a blue moon, someone would stop by his house and give him a few hundred thousand dong to remember to sign documents for dissolution or tax reduction. He signed again, became the director of another company, and then was dragged down again to the list of “main sponsors” with no money!

At this point, my friend concluded: "That's a story from several years ago, but now the people of Dong village are all too familiar with the appearance of Director H followed by a whole series of Directors I, K, L, M, N... there are so many of them! In short, there are now as many directors in Dong village as motorbike taxi drivers. You can't go out without encountering a director." This somewhat humorous information from a casual conversation over tea and drinks certainly didn't make anyone laugh. People didn't believe the slightly "literary" details of the story either. But most of those present felt a pang of bitterness. The booming emergence of the private business community, a significant portion of which is "ghost," has led to a rapid and massive growth in the number of business owners. Those who observe closely are probably not surprised by this phenomenon of "directors driving motorbike taxis." Not long ago, the Central Television even aired a documentary about this reality. What do they establish businesses for? The truth is, behind those seemingly naive directors like Mr. H from Dong village, there's always a cunning old fox. They borrow the names H, I, and K to deceive the authorities, then comfortably hide behind the scenes to pull the strings, control operations, and rake in billions of dong through shady business practices. That's why many businesses remain closed all day, with no employees and no transactions. Some businesses, established just a few years ago, have changed their names three times and applied for license amendments eleven times. Some entities are essentially engaged in the business of selling tax invoices. This situation is not hard to find or observe!

Admittedly, the enactment of the Enterprise Law in recent years has brought a new lease of life. It has fundamentally changed the business environment, encouraged the establishment of hundreds of thousands of businesses, mobilized strong social resources, and boosted economic development. However, the seemingly "open" aspects of the law have created loopholes for the emergence of fraudulent businesses. Although society and regulatory agencies have recognized the inadequacies of the "technical barriers" that were insufficient to protect against them, and acknowledged the opportunists exploiting these wide-open gaps, the process of addressing these issues has not received adequate attention. The phenomenon of "family-owned limited liability companies" or families with multiple companies is not uncommon and is not always healthy. It cannot be said that they were unaware, but if they truly were, then either their responsibility or their competence needs to be reviewed. Furthermore, the "synergy" of the leniency of tax laws, bankruptcy laws, competition laws, civil laws, etc., has led many cases to stray far from the regulatory framework. Perhaps that's why, by the time problems arise, it's often too late to resort to criminal law. The danger of this is that it creates inequality in business, harming legitimate businesses and, worse, polluting the business environment.

The draft of the 2014 revised Enterprise Law has been attracting significant public attention. Fundamental reform efforts aimed at transparency are creating an atmosphere of fair and scientific debate. The "elimination of phantom businesses" is, of course, not outside the wishes of the authorities. We need decisive and cautious steps to overcome these difficulties. Creating opportunities for businesses to be established is a positive sign for the economy. However, it's time we have a strong enough "filter" to weed out the shady ones from the outset. Hopefully, in the not-too-distant future, there will no longer be the kind of "directors" who also work as motorbike taxi drivers, as in the story of Dong village. A healthy business environment ultimately creates a healthy society. There's a saying: "Everyone chooses the easy work, who will take on the hard work?" The division of labor is an inevitable part of the upward process. Simply put, each person has their own job. You don't have to "meet the boss every time you step outside" to get ahead in life!

Nguyen Khac An