Hospitals must work around the clock in New Year: Ministry

The Ministry of Health yesterday asked medical facilities nationwide to work around the clock in the New Year to ensure treatment and emergency treatment mission during the holidays.

In addition, hospitals must prepare full medical equipment and personnel for the special holidays. 

Medical clinics must intensify control on food safety in businesses and festive places. As per the Ministry’s direction, hospital managers must arrange staffs to work around the clock to ensure continuous services.

Hospitals should also liaise with police and relevant forces to keep its premise in order and fire prevention.

The Ministry asked all hospital managers to tighten control on firefighting and turn off all electricity equipment if unnecessary. Burning incense and indoor cooking are forbidden in hospitals.

Chan May port welcomes 87,000 foreign visitors in 2016

Nearly 87,000 international holiday-makers visited tourist sites in the central province of Thua Thien–Hue in 2016 or nearly 10 percent year-on-year through Chan May port by cruise ships.

Recently, Bahamas-flagged Luxury liner Ovation of the Seas, carrying nearly 4,100 passengers and 1,600 crewmembers, anchored in Chan May port, touring historical and tourist sites in Hue, Hoi An city of Quang Nam province and central Da Nang city. 

Chan May port is located in the centre of Vietnam between the two big cities in the central region - Hue and Da Nang. The port also lies on the main sea route connecting Singapore, the Philippines, Hong Kong (China) and Vietnam. 

It is among 46 seaports in Southeast Asia selected by the Asia Cruise Association as a stopover for cruise ships.

With the upgraded wharf with 420 metres in length and 12.5 metres in depth, the port can now accommodate 30,000 DWT vessels and cruise ships carrying over 3,000-4,000 passengers, each.

The port is designed to receive about 4.8-5.4 million tonnes of goods a year by 2020, and about 8.9-10.2 million tonnes a year by 2030. 

The local authorities will invest to build two or three more wharfs for up-to 50,000 tonne ships in 2020, and two more wharfs for 50,000 tonne-cargo ships, and one for international cruise ships with capacity of 225,000GT in 2030. 

No nurturing unnatural actions

Many residents of Tam Đảo Town, well known for its mountains, forests, cool climate and a waterfall, are fed up with phượt thủ (Vietnamese backpackers).

Nguyễn Hồng Hiệp, chairman of the Tam Đảo District’s People’s Committee, said these backpackers, who travel usually in groups, pitch tents at any place they feel like, enter and pick vegetables from locals’ farms and gardens without their permission, and litter the place.

Worse still, some use the winding hilly roads in the small town as a racetrack. They speed up and down on large motorbikes, creating a lot of noise and instilling a lot of fear among local residents. 

One young resident took to Facebook to vent his ire, and his post has been shared widely.

“Stop making us live with your rubbish, sleep amidst your noise and suffer your low awareness!” he wrote.

Many have since suggested that local authorities take preventive action, like installing a barrier at the town’s entrance, banning large motorbikes from entering the town and fining visitors for specific violations.

If you love nature, you cannot nurture unnatural behaviour. 

Ensuring food safety during Lunar New Year and spring festival season

The 2017 Lunar New Year (Tet) and the spring festival season are coming, entailing concerns over food safety issues as this will be the time seeing the most consumption of food commodities in the year, particularly meat, fish, eggs, candies, wine, beer and soft drinks.

In order to meet the increasing consumption demand, food producers and traders are currently entering a sprint stage to accelerate their production, trading and import activities. Besides, the humid weather in the northern region and the sunny weather in the south these days may impact on food quality, possibly leading to food poisoning cases.

Aiming to ensure safe food for people during the Tet holiday, the Central Intersectoral Steering Committee on Food Safety has issued a plan to implement its tasks in the upcoming Lunar New Year and spring festival season. Accordingly, at the central level, the steering committee will set up six intersectoral inspection teams with the involvement of the Ministries of Health, Agriculture and Rural Development, Industry and Trade, Science and Technology, and Public Security, and other departments and agencies.

The delegations will carry out inspection work in 12 cities and provinces, namely Hanoi, Bac Ninh, Ho Chi Minh City, Binh Phuoc, Khanh Hoa, Ninh Thuan, Phu Tho, Tuyen Quang, An Giang, Dong Thap, Gia Lai and Kon Tum. At the same time, cities, provinces, districts and communes will establish inspection teams of their own to scrutinise the situation of food hygiene and safety in their localities during the period.

The inspections are aimed at evaluating State management over food safety from provincial to communal level, as well as the observance of regulations on ensuring food safety among producers and traders of food and catering services, thereby preventing and handling violation cases in a timely fashion, minimising the number of food poisoning cases and food-borne diseases, and introducing measures to enhance the validity and effectiveness of State management in this field.

In addition to their upholding a high sense of responsibility with consumers and building and protecting their trademarks, food producers, traders and processors need to seriously observe regulations on food safety via constantly supervising the food processing, transporting and preserving procedures and improving knowledge for employees in food processing and preservation.

Local authorities are responsible for working closely with the health sector to boost communication about food safety and guide the selection, purchasing, processing, preservation and consumption of safe food; promoting the importance of the observance of hygiene regulations in preventing the risk of food pollution and food-borne diseases; and informing people of the food producing, trading and processing institutions violating food safety regulations via mass media so that people will be able to avoid low-quality food.

With the strong engagement of ministries, sectors all all-level People’s Committees, the active participation of people in fighting food safety violations and the high sense of responsibility with consumers upheld by food producing, processing and trading institutions, there is a strong belief that people will be able to welcome the 2017 Lunar New Year and spring festival season without fears about food safety issues.     

Winners of writing contest on sea, islands sovereignty for young OV awarded

Winners of a writing contest on sea and islands sovereignty for young Overseas Vietnamese (OV) were awarded at a ceremony held in Hanoi on December 28 by the Ministry of Information and Communications (MIC) and the Vietnam Youth Federation.

One first, two second, three third and nine consolation prizes worth around VND100 (US$ 4,400) million in total were presented at the event.

The VND30 million (US$1,300) first prize went to Nguyen Dinh Phu and Le Quoc Chien from the Vietnamese Youth and Students' Association in the US for their writing on building an information and data system on Vietnam’s sea and islands.

Speaking at the awards ceremony, MIC Minister Truong Minh Tuan called on the young OV to raise a high sense of revolutionary spirit, nurture their ethics, and improve their qualifications in order to make further contributions to their Fatherland.

The contest was launched in July this year to raise the awareness among young OV of the country’s sovereignty over its sea and islands and the national territorial integration and encourage their initiatives and solutions on safeguarding national sovereignty.

It received an enthusiastic response from Overseas Vietnamese youngsters and students living and studying in many countries around the world, with 202 entries submitted, in which contestants from the US, UK and the Republic of Korea recorded the largest number of entries.     

State management in religious affairs reviewed

The year 2016 has seen many religious events held across the country, attracting large numbers of followers and visitors, and religious organisations have actively joined in charity and humanitarian work to help natural disaster victims, it was reported at a conference on State management of religious affairs in Hanoi on December 28.

Vice Chairman of the Government Committee for Religious Affairs Bui Thanh Ha said authorities at all levels took care to attend and convey congratulations to all major religious conferences and ceremonies, which reflected the consistent policy of the Party and State on respecting and ensuring the right to religious and belief freedom.  

The State has facilitated the construction, repair and upgrade of religious training and worship establishments. 

Ha emphasized that the majority of religious dignitaries and followers back the Party and State’s internal and external affairs, and religious followers actively join patriotic emulation movements, contributing to socio-political stability and economic growth, while the relationship between the State, all-level authorities and religious organisations has grown closer. 

The Government Committee for Religious Affairs has maintained ties with counterpart agencies in Southeast Asia, the US and several western countries, as well as boosted ties with the Vatican during the year.  

Deputy Minister of Home Affairs Nguyen Trong Thua, however, admitted that collaboration among sectors in the settlement of complex religious issues remains loose. 

He asked the committee to play an active role in the process of drafting two governmental decrees guiding the enforcement of the Law on Belief and Religion, which is slated to take effect on January 1, 2018. 

Deputy Minister of Public Security Pham Dung, for his part, suggested the Government Committee for Religious Affairs put forward short, mid and long-term policies on State management in religious affairs as well as advise the Party and State on the field. 

German-funded project benefits disabled in Quang Tri

Over 3,000 people with disabilities and their families in the central province of Quang Tri have benefited from a German-funded rehabilitation project over the last three years.

The figure was announced at a meeting in the locality on December 28 to review the implementation of the community-based project, which has been financed by the German organization, Caritas, since 2000.

Through the project, local medical staff and families of the disabled in 20 communes, wards and towns of Cam Lo and Gio Linh districts and Dong Ha city were taught physical therapy and guided how to care for and help the disabled. 

A centre to support people living with disabilities was established, contributing to rehabilitate about 25-30 disabled children each day. 

In 2017-2019 period, the programme will focus on activities related to health care, education, livelihood, and empowerment of the disabled. 

It will intensify the work of check-up and treatment, and work with freelancers and volunteers to provide rehabilitation service and medicines to local disable people. 

Courses of life skill, vocational training will organised for children with disabilities, towards helping them easily integrate into the community.  

Attention will be also paid to a programme to generate livelihoods, which is hoped to help improve income and living conditions for disable people, and giving a chance for them to join cultural and sport activities and enjoy their interests.

Binh Phuoc inaugurates industrial waste treatment plant

The first phase of a plant treating industrial and hazardous waste went into operation in the southern province of Binh Phuoc on December 28.

The plant’s phase 1 was built at a cost of 180 billion VND (8.1 million USD) in Suoi Binh hamlet, Dong Tien commune, Dong Phu district. It also has a system to treat liquid waste with a capacity of 20 cu.m per hour.

The plant will be expanded to cover 36 hectares with an investment of 320 billion VND (14.5 million USD).

Nutritionist proposes ‘10,000 steps a day’ walking movement for Saigonese

Ho Chi Minh City residents should try to walk at least 10,000 steps a day to improve health and fight diseases related to lack of exercise, a nutrition expert has advised.

Do Thi Ngoc Diep, director of Ho Chi Minh City Nutrition Center, gave the advice at a meeting between city officials and intellectuals on December 27, expressing her wish that a movement will be launched based on her idea.

Walking 10,000 steps a day helps improve health and prevent chronic non-communicable diseases and overweight, Diep told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper, citing recommendations by the World Health Organization (WHO).

According to Diep, malnourished children in Ho Chi Minh City make up for 4.1 percent of those under five years of age, compared to the country’s percentage of 14.6, while the average height of the city’s elementary students are also 1.2 centimeters higher than WHO’s world average.

Both figures are positive health indicators, Diep said, though they are not enough to balance out that around 41 percent of students between six and 18 years of age in the city are overweight or obese, according to latest statistics by the municipal Department of Health.

The southern metropolitan also boasts Vietnam’s highest rates of high blood pressure and diabetes, even comparable to some developed countries, Diep added.

The health expert attributed the fact to the expanding urban lifestyle in Ho Chi Minh City, saying lack of exercise and unbalanced diets were to blame for increasing health problems of its citizens.

“Public space for exercise is also extremely limited, with crammed school yards, few and encroached parks, rugged pavements, and faraway sporting facilities,” Diep explained.

Diep suggested establishing a public campaign to encourage the city’s residents to exercise at least 30 minutes a day, which would not only improve the citizens’ health but also their productivity.

The goal can be achieved by renovating the city’s pavements, opening new public spaces, and building parking lots at least 15 walking minutes away from shopping malls and public transport stations to encourage exercise among citizens, Diep said.

“Ho Chi Minh City is looking to become a smart city with good quality of life for its residents, so this is just a part of realizing that goal,” Diep stressed.

Diep also expressed her wish that city’s leaders may also join in the campaign to inspire other citizens.

Tunnel planned under Ton Duc Thang road in downtown HCM City

The government of HCMC is planning to build a tunnel under Ton Duc Thang Street stretching from Ba Son Shipyard area to a bridge connecting districts 1 and 4.

The planned tunnel would run along the Saigon River from Thu Thiem 2 Bridge, which is under construction, to Khanh Hoi Bridge. It is part of a broader project to upgrade Bach Dang Wharf Park just adjacent to the Nguyen Hue pedestrian square.

In an urgent announcement issued last week by the Office of the HCM City People’s Committee, the city had given approval in principal to Saigontourist Holding Company to draw up a plan for upgrading Bach Dang Wharf Park.

Municipal authorities noted the investor should design approach roads to the tunnel for Ham Nghi and Nguyen Hue boulevards, as well as Khanh Hoi Bridge.

The investor would be able to expand the wharf park in a way that would not narrow the width of the Saigon River.

The city government requires the investor to factor waterway taxi, metro and rapid bus transit services into the project.

In mid-2013, the city assigned Saigontourist to prepare a plan for developing Bach Dang Wharf Park into a tourism complex which included piers for tourist boats and other recreational services.

In July this year, the city government allowed District 1 to overtake the wharf park upgrade project and call for investors. However, after a meeting with relevant departments and agencies on December 12, city chairman Nguyen Thanh Phong took Saigontourist back on board.

The city banned hydrofoils and restaurant boats from anchoring at Bach Dang Wharf in April 2015 to pave the way for the upgrade of the wharf park. However, the project has yet to get off the ground since.

Vietnamese tile maker caught dumping waste into river

The company reportedly directed coal sludge into the Thi Vai River in Dong Nai Province.

Police in southern Vietnam recently caught a ceramic tile factory dumping industrial waste into the Thi Vai River, the Vietnam News Agency reported.

Pak Vietnam, a local company that manufactures and sells construction materials, was caught pumping black putrid sewage into a storm drain.

According to reports from VNA, the untreated waste flowed through a drainage ditch into a nearby industrial park before settling in a segment of the Thi Vai River in Dong Nai Province.

A company representative said the sludge came from a coal gasification boiler that broke down several days before police made their discovery.

Investigators have collected samples of the sludge and ordered the factory to halt its dumping at once.

The Thi Vai River became the subject of Vietnam's first major environmental investigation in 2009 when Taiwanese MSG manufacturer Vedan Viet Nam confessed to having piped untreated wastewater into the river for years.

The company's intransigence led to a national boycott of its products.

Even after being forced to pay a US$6 million fine, Vedan was caught again in 2015.

Industrial waste discharges became a serious problem for Vietnam after the country witnessed massive fish deaths along more than 200 kilometers of the central coastline in early April.

Taiwanese steel plant Formosa was held responsible for the disaster as authorities found the firm had discharged a cocktail of toxic chemicals into the sea through an illegal drainage pipe.

Authorities say it's now safe to swim off the coast of the four provinces affected by the disaster, but the integrity of seafood caught within 20 nautical miles (37 kilometers) off the coast remains unclear.

Hanoi court jails 2 overseas Vietnamese for robbery

The duo, by accident, found an elusive debtor on a Hanoi street after nearly a decade. They attacked him.

A court in Hanoi on December 28 sentenced two overseas Vietnamese to jail for assaulting and robbing a man last year.

Nguyen Thi Van, 45, a Canadian citizen, and Nguyen Cong Thanh, 42, from the U.S., received 14 and 16 months respectively.

The court heard that in 2007, Van lent Nguyen Quang Thai, another Canadian Vietnamese, about VND2.5 billion (US$109,000) but she could never contact him to get the money back.

During their trip to Vietnam in October last year, Van and Thanh found the debtor by accident in the Old Quarter. They tried to catch him and were accused of assaulting him.

The duo also allegedly robbed him of VND10 million (US$434) worth of cash and then held him captive, until the man's relatives paid them US$2,000.

The court on Wednesday found them guilty of assault and robbery.

30-yr sentence upheld for Vietnam ex-banker behind US$122.6mn loan loss

A Hanoi appeal court on December 27 upheld the verdict of a former banker, who was sentenced in October 2015 to 30 years imprisonment for her main role in a corruption scandal that caused multi million-dollar losses to a state-owned bank.

Pham Thi Bich Luong, former director of the South Hanoi branch of Agriculture and Rural Development Bank of Vietnam (Agribank), lost her appeal against the jail sentence for “breaching regulations on loan provision” and “abusing power while performing official duties”.

The Hanoi court on December 27 decided to uphold the ruling after ten days working on the appeal.

In October 2015 Luong was indicted, alongside 17 others, for involving in a foreigner-related economic case that led to losses in loans of over US$122.6 million to Agribank in the 2008-12 period.

The ex-bankers had been cheated into offering loans to five foreigners from Lifepro Vietnam Joint Venture Company who sketched a fake project to borrow money from the bank.

Two of the foreigners are Chinese national Yang Hong, chairman of the company’s management board, and Boubker El Fehdi, of Canadian nationality, the firm’s general director.

The other three are the shareholders of the company, including two Canadians Driss Bou Chama and Ahmed El Fehdi, and Italian man Manuela Polga.

Between 2008 and 2012, Luong proposed that the management board of Agribank offer loans to Enzo Viet JSC, the predecessor of Lifepro Vietnam, without verifying its lending files and conforming to lending regulations.

The wrongdoings by Luong and other banking officials caused a total loss of VND2,755 billion ($122.6 million) worth of loans given to the company.

The appeal court also upheld a similar sentence to Chu Thi Kim Hien, Luong’s deputy at the South Hanoi branch, while rejecting the appeal by Pham Thanh Tan, former general director of Agribank, and sentenced him to 22 years in prison.

The October 2015 ruling of a 13-year sentence each for Nguyen Thi Nguyet Thanh, former head of the bank’s International Payment Department, and Nguyen Huu Thanh, former deputy head of the South Hanoi branch’s International Payment Department, was also upheld.

Out of the 17 defendants who filed for appeal, only nine had their sentences reduced or replaced with probation.

The foreigners involved in the scam were also made to pay a compensation of VND2.5 trillion ($111.61 million) to Agribank apart from their sentence.

Vietnam Red Cross provides relief aid to DPRK’s flood victims

The Vietnam Red Cross Society (VRCS) has provided commodities and necessities worth US$70,000 to help victims who were affected by a devastating flood in September in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK).

The aid aimed to help the flood victims overcome consequences and stabilise their lives.    

VRCS Vice Chairman Doan Van Thai symbolically handed over the goods to DPRK Ambassador to Vietnam Kim Myong Gil on December 28.

The ambassador expressed his gratitude to the VRCS, stressing that the assistance is a great source of encouragement to people affected by natural disasters in the DPRK.

Seminar discusses museum visitors needs and wants

Museums are facing enormous pressure nowadays, especially meeting visitor expectations, said Dr Nguyen Van Cuong, director of the National Museum of History at a seminar on December 28 in Hanoi.

Often high quality in combination with a low price is a basic requirement for people to visit a museum, he continued, adding that in order to provide the highest quality and generate sufficient revenue to cover costs, it is crucial to increase visitor numbers.

Currently there are too many museums across the country that are failing to attract sufficient numbers of visitors needed and they will not financially survive if a satisfactory remedy isn’t found.

He pointed out that the notable exceptions are the Ho Chi Minh Museum, Vietnamese Women’s Museum, the National Museum of History and Vietnam Museum of Ethnology, which are strong in both areas.

The seminar attracted representatives from 17 museums and management boards of relics and cultural sites to discuss best practices to boost visitor numbers to museums across the country in the coming time.

Trà Vinh green lights plan to grow specialty fruits

The Trà Vinh Province People’s Committee has approved a plan to develop 20,000ha of specialty fruits from now through 2020.

The plan, to be implemented by the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, targets 70 per cent of the 20,000ha being farmed using good agriculture practices for exports.

Each hectare will yield an annual income of VNĐ170 million (US$7,700).

The lands for the specialty fruits, mostly orange, mango, grapefruit and banana, will be zoned in Cầu Kè, Càng Long, Châu Thành, and Tiểu Cần districts.

In Cầu Kè, situated on the Hậu River and with fertile soil and freshwater all year round, about 4,000ha of specialty fruits will be developed and also be used for tourism services.

Trần Trung Hiền, director of the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development, said the province would raise around VNĐ620 billion ($28 million), including from private investors, to carry out the plan.

The money would be used to build infrastructure and technical facilities for fruit production and sales, he said.

The province would also offer incentives for investing in production of high-quality fruit seedlings as well as purchasing, processing and exporting fruits, he said.

The Cửu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Trà Vinh has around 6,800ha of orchards, including 1,150ha under mango, 1,830ha under king orange, 880ha under grapefruit, 1,650ha under longan and 1,630ha under banana, according to the department.

Most fruit orchards in the province are planted by individual farmers.

But there is little investment in infrastructure and application of advanced farming techniques while production linkages are insufficient.

Therefore, output and quality have not been steady, especially amid climate change, high tides and salinity intrusion, which have all affected fruit trees.

Drought and salinity at the end of last year and in the early part of this year reduced yields by 10-30 per cent on 3,700ha of fruits, according to the department.

In the last five years fruit orchards have yielded an average income of VNĐ100-120 million ($4,500 – 5,400) per hectare a year.

The provincial fruit growers association has helped farmers renovate nearly 3,900ha of low-yielding orchards and convert 1,000ha of poor rice fields into fruit orchards in recent years.

In Cầu Kè District, for instance, many farmers have turned their low-yielding rice fields into king orange orchards.

The district now has more than 1,900ha under king orange, including 945ha in Tam Ngãi Commune.

Phan Văn Biết, who has 1,000 king orange trees in a 5,000sq.m orchard in Tam Ngãi, said they have yielded fruits for the last three years.

Earlier he had grown rice, but with the land being situated at an elevation, it was not suitable for growing rice.

After attending a training course run by commune agriculture officials Biết turned his rice field into the orange orchard.

It takes a grafted king orange seedling around two years to mature and bear fruit.

Cầu Kè farmers said they have an income of more than VNĐ100 million ($4,500) per hectare per year from king oranges.

On the other hand rice farmers earn VNĐ39 million ($1,700) from three rice crops a year, according to the Cầu Kè District Agriculture and Rural Development Bureau.

City crackdown on fake goods

HCM City’s market management authorities should closely monitor the production and trading of goods for Tết (Lunar New Year) to keep out contraband and fakes, Lê Văn Khoa, deputy chairman of the city People’s Committee, said. 

Speaking at a seminar on Tuesday, he said they should also urge businesspeople to choose quality goods to sell.

The New Year falls on January 28.

This year market management teams have uncovered nearly 5,400 cases of trading and possession of banned, smuggled and fake goods, according to the Market Management Division.

They seized more than 39,000 bottles of imported alcoholic drinks and energy drinks and 6,656 bottles of expired juices and green tea.

They also found nearly 50 tonnes of Aone monosodium glutamate made in China and Thailand but labelled as made in Việt Nam.

They fined the offenders around VNĐ134 billion (US$6 million), more than 40 per cent up from last year.

Cigarette smuggling from neighbouring provinces is rife and done Bình Chánh District which borders Long An Province and Củ Chi District which borders Tây Ninh. The contraband is sold in Học Lạc Market in District 5.

Authorities from various city agencies have strengthened co-operation to eradicate smuggling hotspots.

Nguyễn Thanh Bình, deputy director of the Market Management Division, said the division should be extremely vigilant in its fight against smuggling and commercial fraud by focusing on goods that are in high demand during Tết, including candy, soft drinks, beer and liquor, he said.

Next year the division would try to anticipate market trends and become more professional in monitoring airports, roads, trains, waterway traffic and markets, he said.

It would seek to improve its efficiency in preventing smuggling and other unauthorised transport of goods into the city, he said. 

TPD to screen It’s a Wonderful Life

Today the Centre for Assistance and Development of Movie Talents (TPD) will present a screening of the movie It’s A Wonderful Life directed by the American director Frank Capra.

Produced in 1946, the fantasy drama movie is based on the short story and booklet The Greatest Gift by Philip Van Doren.

The film stars James Stewart as George Bailey, a man who has given up his dreams to help others, and whose imminent suicide on Christmas Eve brings about the intervention of his guardian angel, Clarence Odbody (Henry Travers). Clarence shows George all the lives he has touched and how different life in his community of Bedford Falls would be had he never been born.

The film was nominated for five Academy Awards including Best Picture and has been recognised by the American Film Institute as one of the 100 best American films ever made.

Director Capra said that the film was his personal favourite among those he directed.

The film will be presented in English with Vietnamese subtitles. Entry: VND20,000 (donation for TPD’s fund for movie talents). The screening will be at 7.30pm. TPD is located on the 4th floor, 51 Trần Hưng Đạo Street.

New Year musical celebrates love

A new play by the HCM City Theatre is attracting attention with its fairytale romance. 

Nàng Xuân Đại Náo (Miss Spring Acts) is a New Year musical about the love between a poor student and a beautiful girl named Xuân, the daughter of a mandarin.

It is about the hurdles they face to their love and how they battle to overcome them.

Lê Diễn, its director and deputy director of the theatre, said: "This season we offer audiences a new taste of drama full of music and images.

"All our staff worked hard every day to improve their modulation and acting."

"We want audiences to see love as a wonderful thing that can keep people alive." 

The play would shine a light on good men and their “beautiful mind” and love, he said.

Nàng Xuân Đại Náo was written by Vương Huyền Cơ, a strong advocate of reforming theatre and also a cultural researcher.

He backed Diễn’s idea of staging his work as a musical and told him to get young musicians to create music for the play because "I wanted my play, an old story, to be modern in both language and music."  

Diễn said the play’s costume designers worked hard to create clothes in a mix of traditional and modern styles.

“We hope our creative approach towards the play will provide a relaxing and humorous evening for the audience on New Year.”  

The play features dozens of well-known actors like Anh Tuấn, Mai Phương and Việt Hà and fashion model Trúc Diễm, who plays the titular role.

Diễn got the super model, who is admittedly not renowned for her acting skills, to play Xuân and explained: “I decided to cast Diễm in this role because no one can deliver the image of Xuân to audiences better than a beauty queen. I believe her appearance will dazzle theatre lovers.”

Nguyễn Nam Thắng, a second-year student at the HCM City University of Theatre and Cinematography, said: "I can’t imagine how Diễm and her young colleagues will perform on stage. But I’m waiting to see their creation.”

Thắng and his friends usually watch plays every Christmas and New Year.

Nàng Xuân Đại Náo will premiere on December 30 at the HCM City Theatre, 30 Trần Hưng Đạo Street, District 1.

It will then be staged every weekend until the Lunar New Year, which falls on January 28.

Winner of TV singing contest debuts MV

Dương Hoàng Yến, winner of the Cặp Đôi Hoàn Hảo 2015 – the Vietnamese version of the British television reality singing contest Just the Two of Us, released her first MV single last week.

Entitled Dù Chỉ Là (Even Though), the music video is her first product from a series that will be presented next year. The MV features a ballad written by composer and music producer Khắc Hưng – a popular songwriter of many famous Vietnamese artists, including Mỹ Tâm, Isaac and Hoàng Rob.

The songwriter said he was satisfied when he listened to the demo record of the song, presented by Yến. “Her emotion, her voice and singing technique – everything is suitable with the song, that’s why I didn’t hesitate to decide that the Even Though will be for her,” he said.

The 10-minute MV, which was shot in the famous resort city of Đà Lạt, stars the young heartthrob Tuấn Duy and actress Đào Phương Anh.

The 26-year-old singer Yến rose to fame when she competed at the Sao Mai Điểm Hẹn (Morning Star – Rendezvous) in 2008 and bagged the Promising Singer title. The songstress then competed on The Voice in 2013. She now is also a lecturer on vocals at the Hà Nội College of Arts.

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