Ha Tinh Province’s authority violated regulations by granting the Taiwanese-owned Formosa company a 70-year land lease, Deputy Government Inspector General Ngo Van Khanh said at a regular press conference yesterday.

He made the comment while fielding questions from reporters on the responsibility of Ha Tinh leaders in granting an investment licence to Hung Nghiep Formosa Ha Tinh Steel Company, also called Formosa - the culprit of the recent mass fish deaths in four central provinces.

He said that prior to 2014, a provincial authority was only authorised to permit a land lease for a period of up to 50 years.

The previous 2005 investment law allowed foreign-invested projects to have a maximum 50-year life span. The Government will, in certain cases, decide to grant a longer period, which cannot exceed 70 years.

“The Ha Tinh authority granted Formosa the permission in 2012 when the Formosa project was not approved by the Prime Minister. The decision, therefore, is against their mandate,” Khanh said.

Khánh said this violation had already been pointed out by the Government Inspectorate in 2014 following a general inspection on construction investment and land management in the central Ha Tinh Province in 2012.

He said the Government Inspectorate had asked the Ministry of Investment and Planning to examine the case and propose a solution to the Prime Minister. The Prime Minister later gave approval to keep the 70-year period, as it was in accordance with Investment Law 2014, which replaced Investment Law 2005.

The Deputy Government Inspector General added that following the inspection, the Government Inspector had asked the Ha Tinh authority to hold those involved accountable.

“However, Ha Tinh leaders have not carried out this work earnestly,” he said.

In regard to tackling the consequences of Formosa’s incident, Khanh said the Party, State and related ministries, including the Government Inspectorate, were acting to mitigate the consequences of the environmental disaster, as well as making and improving related policies in order to assist residents of the four affected provinces.

Violations at PVC

In addition to Formosa-related questions, Khanh also addressed issues that have recently gained public attention, including the business activities of PetroVietnam Construction Company (PVC).

Khanh said the Government Inspectorate had found violations within some big projects carried out by PVC’s subsidiary companies, such as the bio-ethanol plant in Phu Tho Province and the Dinh Vu Textile Plant in Hai Phong.

A draft conclusion of the inspection showed PVC, as the contractor, was responsible for those violations when carrying out these projects, he said.

The inspectors would propose punishments in accordance with law, he said.

VNS