in which dozens of candidates had their exam scores raised so they could graduate high school and enrol in universities or colleges.

Defendants listen to the verdict on May 21 (Photo: VNA)

Thirteen out of the 15 defendants were charged with “abuse of power while performing their official duties” to inflate the exam scores of students.

Nguyen Quang Vinh, 54, former head of the Testing and Quality Assurance Unit under the provincial Department of Education and Training was given eight years in jail for “abuse of power while performing official duties".

Khuong Ngoc Chat, 39, former head of the Internal Political Security Division under the provincial Department of Public Security; Diep Thi Hong Lien, former vice head of the Testing and Quality Assurance Unit; and Nguyen Khac Tuan, an official of the unit were sentenced to six, three and five years in jail, respectively, for the same charge.

Do Manh Tuan, 41, former vice principle of Lac Thuy District Secondary and High School was given seven years in jail for receiving bribes and three years for abuse of power.

Ho Chuc, 45, former teacher of Thanh Ha High School in Lac Thuy district was sentenced to 30 months in prison for giving bribes.

Other defendants who are former education officials and teachers in the province were given 15 to 30 months either in jail or suspended for abuse of power while performing their official duties.

According to the indictment, the defendants have taken advantage of their positions and made use of their relationships to collude and intervene to raise the marks of candidates in the national high school exam in 2017 and 2018.

The intervention raised marks for 65 candidates who sat for the national exam in 2018 and one candidate who sat for the national exam in 2017.

Of the candidates benefiting from the scheme, 45 were forced to quit school after their exams were re-marked objectively, ten others could continue their university courses as their remarked scores were eligible for university admission.

Six other candidates did not attend university courses even though their re-marked scores met universities’ requirements, one candidate failed to get university admission while another candidate did not apply for any university or college.

12 defendants stand trial in Son La exam scandal

The first-instance trial of 12 defendants in the 2018 exam scandal in Son La province was opened on May 21

The People’s Court of northwestern Son La province on May 21 re-opened a first-instance trial of 12 defendants involved in score manipulations in the 2018 national high school examinations.

The trial was delayed for more than six months as the court requested further investigations.

Eight defendants are being prosecuted for “abusing position and power while performing duties”, including Tran Xuan Yen (former Deputy Director of the Son La Provincial Department of Education and Training), Lo Van Huynh (former head of the department’s division for examination and educational quality management), Cam Thi Bun Son (former deputy head of the department’s division for politics and thought), Nguyen Thanh Nhan (former deputy head of the division for examination and educational quality management), and Nguyen Thi Hong Nga (former specialist at the division for examination and educational quality management).

Former Vice Rector of the To Hieu High School Dang Huu Thuy and two other former cadres of the internal political security division at the Son La Department of Public Security, Do Khac Hung and Dinh Hai Son, also face the same charge.

Meanwhile, four other defendants were accused of “offering bribes”, including Hoang Thi Thanh (former Chairwoman of the Farmers’ Union in the province’s Quynh Nhai district), Tran Van Dien (a former cadre at the Chieng Coi Primary and Junior High School), Lo Thi Truong (a resident in Son La city), and Nguyen Minh Khoa (former deputy head of the internal political security division at the Department of Public Security).

Lo Van Huynh, Nguyen Thi Hong Nga, and Cam Thi Bun Son were also charged with “receiving bribes”.

According to the indictment from the Son La Provincial People’s Procuracy, the defendants took advantage of their positions and power for self-interest. Via relations with family, friends, and colleagues, they colluded with one another to raise the scores of 44 examination takers./.VNA

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