VietNamNet Bridge – Some sports officials on December 7, received text messages from an unknown number which said that the Vietnam Football Federation’s (VFF) Chairman Nguyen Trong Hy and Secretary General Tran Quoc Tuan had agreed to resign at the guidance of their superior.
This is the content of message: “Mr. Hy and Mr. Tuan have agreed to step down at the suggestion of Mr. Vuong Bich Thang, Chief of the General Department of Sports and Physical Training, according to a source from the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism.”

The text message has surprised many people because if it is true, this is the violation of FIFA’s rules.

According to officials who received the message, in the past two weeks, someone launched a campaign, with the participation of many people, to ask Hy and Tuan to step down.

A lot of text message were sent to cell phones of high-ranking officials of the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, the General Department of Sports and Physical Training and some journalists. They also sent many questions about the VFF to some newspapers, asking these newspapers to transfer the questions to Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Hoang Tuan Anh.

Some people who called themselves football fans called for other fans through text messages to send SOS to Minister Hoang Tuan Anh, asking him to save Vietnam’s football. They sent each other the mobile phone numbers of VFF officials and Minister Tuan Anh, plus the email addresses of the Minister’s secretaries. Some messages and emails suggested candidates to replace Hy and Tuan.

It is said that those who sent such text messages have good understanding of the structure and the missions of officials of the VFF, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the General Department of Sports and Physical Training.

The VFF is a social organization, a member of the FIFA and it operates under FIFA regulations. Governmental organizations, thus, have no authority to intervene in the federation’s activities. If the above rumor is accurate, Vietnam’s football will be punished by FIFA.

Vuong Bich Thang, chief of the General Department of Sports and Physical Training, said that the agency is under great pressure from the public. However, the department does not manage personnel task at the VFF. He confirmed that it is the business of VFF to appoint or dismiss its officials.

Thang said that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism had asked the VFF and U23 squad to review their mistakes and failure at the Southeast Asian Games 2011 to find out solutions.

VFF’s Secretary General Tran Quoc Tuan told an online newspaper: “I did not receive the message nor know about the case. Anyway, VFF is an orthodox organization so I have no idea about messages that were sent by unknown people.” Meanwhile, VFF’s Chair Hy did not pick up the phone.

Lam Son