ATMs run out of money ahead of Tet

Many people were angry when they were unable to withdraw cash from ATMs over the weekend, the Lao Dong (Labour) Newspaper reported.

Bui The Hien went to a BIDV ATM machine in Ton Duc Thang Street to withdraw cash, but the machine had run out of money.

Another resident, Nguyen Thi Quynh Huong, faced a similar problem when an ATM displayed an "out of service" message when she  tried to withdraw money several times.

There have been several reports of problems with ATMs in the run-up to Tet (Lunar New Year), especially at industrial parks and export processing zones.

The newspaper reported that in the Thang Long Industrial Zone, hundreds of workers stood in a long queue in the rain to withdraw money. But many ATMs were out of service.

Several ATMs in Ho Tung Mau, Cau Giay, Nguyen Chi Thanh and Huynh Thuc Khang streets were not working.

The ATMs often run out of money over the weekend when the banks are closed, leading to questions whether banks should be punished for not attending to the problem.

The SBV inspection and monitoring agency has asked commercial banks to ensure smooth operation of their ATMS during the Tet holiday.

The inspections will focus on ATMs installed in industrial parks and export processing zones, where millions of workers are paid via cards.

These machines often run out of money and regularly break down.

The agency will take action against any bank whose ATMs have problems such as running out of cash, inappropriate suspension of operations and lack of customer care service.

The agency has asked banks to ensure that all ATMs operate smoothly and have a sufficient supply of cash before, during and after Tet.

It has also asked the banks to carry out timely repairs of ATMs as well as to open new ATMs at busy locations.

The agency said banks should ensure the security of their customers by deploying guards at several "risky" locations and by installing cameras in all booths.

Deputy Governor of the State Bank of Viet Nam Dao Minh Tu said commercial banks would be fined VND10 million to VND15 million ($476-$714) if their ATMs did not have sufficient funds over the New Year.

There are now nearly 80 million bank accounts and 16,000 ATMs in the country, but these machines will be overloaded even if just 10 per cent of the customers withdraw cash at the same time.

Unlicensed river ports remain very common in the southern province of Dong Nai despite the fact that local authorities had previously announced plans to crack down, even eliminate all of them, by 2010.

According to a report from the province People's Committee, of 96 ports still in operation, only a third are legal.

More than half the unlicensed ports, 35, are in the vicinity of Bien Hoa City.

They are mostly used to transport construction materials, with sand and stone brought to them by barge and lifted into trucks by crane.

Dau Tu (Viet Nam Investment Review) newspaper quoted a Department of Transport spokesperson as saying: "We have raided many of these ports. But by the time we check one, all others close down. Many even have barges docking at night, meaning we cannot catch them.

"Since 2010 the department has not granted permission for any port and we stepped up raids."

In early 2015 deputy chairman of the provincial People's Committee, Tran Van Vinh, ordered the department and related authorities to resolve the problem by September that year.

He claimed, however, that tackling the problem was very difficult since, unlike on roads, no-parking signs could not be put up easily in waterways.

Thus, when authorities discover a barge moored at a spot but there is no signboard prohibiting it, they cannot slap a penalty, he said.

Signboards should be put up at existing unlicensed ports, which would allow them to impose heavy fines for barges moored without permission, he said.

"Local authorities should review and issue licences for a limited number of ports to help the construction materials business."

Shipping container owners who don't maintain their containers regularly or use unsafe containers will be fined from VND5 million (US$225) to VND10 million ($450) according to a draft decree from the transport ministry.

As well as fines, the containers can be suspended from use for between two and six months for maintenance.

The draft also states that ship owners will be fined up to VND10 million ($450) if they don't have their ships examined and registered regularly or they fail to show valid relevant documents.

Violations like trading, renting or borrowing ship-related documents would face fines from VND20 million ($900) to VND30 million ($1,350).

Deputy head of the ministry's Maritime Administration Bui Thien Thu said that Viet Nam joined the international Convention for Safe Containers in 2014, aiming to better control container activities at seaports as well as container production and inspection.

However, one year after implementing the convention, Viet Nam found difficulties as the country did not have regulations on fines and mechanisms to oversee container maintenance.

He said that the quantity of container shipment via seaports in Viet Nam was huge, up to 10.2 million twenty-foot equivalent unit (TEU) each year while few staff were assigned to examine container safety.

Viet Nam expects to ship 13.3 TEU in 2016, a year-on-year increase of 11 per cent. By 2020, it expects more than 220 million tonnes of goods or 19.5 million TEU.

HCMC transporters preparing for Tet

Thousands of people in HCM City have already begun returning to their hometowns in central and northern regions for Tet (Lunar New Year) which begins on February 8.

To meet transport demand, the Mien Dong (Eastern) and Mien Tay (Western) bus stations as well as Sai Gon Railway Station have made preparations to accommodate passengers and prevent overcrowding.

Some 217 travel firms at Eastern Bus Station have increased the number of coaches to meet the demand in the run-up to Tet.

The station is expected to serve 359,000 passengers from seven to 10 days prior to Tet.

About 3,630 buses will be used during the peak period from January 31 to February 5.

The station will also have 60 buses available in case the number of passenger surges during the period.

Thuong Thanh Hai, deputy director of Western Bus Station, said there were enough bus seats for the holiday.

He said the number of passengers travelling to the Mekong Delta this year would increase by 3-5 per cent over the previous year.

Peak days will be February 5 and 6, with 54,000-56,000 passengers per day.

Major routes with high demand include those from the city to Tien Giang, Ben Tre, Tra Vinh, Can Tho, Dong Thap, An Giang, Kien Giang and Ca Mau provinces in the Mekong Delta and the southern coastal province of Ba Ria - Vung Tau.

Do Quang Van, branch director of Sai Gon Railway Transport Company, said from January 29 to February 6, between 18 and 20 trains would carry 13,000-14,000 passengers a day, departing from Sai Gon Railway Station to central and northern regions.

HCM City's Tan Son Nhat International Airport is accommodating an influx of Viet kieu (overseas Vietnamese) returning home for Tet celebration.

The airport, the largest in the country, has already exceeded its design capacity of 25 million passengers a year.

Last month, the airport served 2.5 million passengers, a rise of more than 20 per cent compared to the same period last year, according to the Southern Airports Authority.

There are now 720 landings and takeoffs at the terminal a day, a 14 percent increase from last year's holiday, and some 100,000 passengers arrive in or leave HCM City via the airport on a daily basis, up 10 per cent over the previous year.

Travellers sometimes have to endure missing flights due to traffic congestion on roads leading to the airport or endless queues at check-in and luggage counters.

According to airline representatives, the entire airport staff will be working during the holiday period, with more attendants helping passengers at check-in.

Budget carrier Vietjet said it had increased the number of auto check-in machines to six from the previous two to help more passengers.

Vietjet also has a team of volunteers to guide passengers to the right check-in counters, as well as help them with luggage scanning.

Meanwhile, national flag carrier Vietnam Airlines has erected a large check-in counter instruction panel in front of its hall, telling passengers which counters they should use, based on their destination.

The airline has also located its luggage wrapping and weighing machines at the entrance to save time for passengers.

Tan Son Nhat management and the Civil Aviation Authority of Viet Nam (CAAV) have also enacted measures to prevent overcrowding.

Vo Huy Cuong, CAAV deputy head, said: "Two weeks prior to Tet, we increased the landing and takeoff frequency at the airport to 40 flights per hour, instead of 36."

The CAAV has also asked airlines to adjust their schedules to ensure optimum operations. New baggage scanning machines have been added to prevent long waiting lines, and a new taxi zone has doubled the number of cabs at the airport.

Airlines said passengers should arrive at the airport at least three hours prior to departure during the holiday period.

Misused hoist causes construction accident

The main cause of the hoist collapse which killed five workers and seriously injured another in the central city of Da Nang last week was its misuse, an official said.

Tran Van Dung, chief inspector of Da Nang's Construction Department said that the hoist is designed to carry people but was used to carry goods when the accident occurred.

The Ministry of Construction has urged the Da Nang People's Committee to closely monitor the technical operation of the hoist and follow regulations on its use and operation to ensure labour safety at construction sites.

Construction Minister Trinh Dinh Dung asked local authorities to strictly impose punishment on individuals and organisations found violating labour safety regulations.

Disadvantaged communes to receive aid from government

As many as 2,275 disadvantaged communes in 48 provinces and cities nationwide will receive funding of VND21 trillion (US$942.5 million) from the State budget to boost socio-economic development during the 2016 to 2020 period.

The Prime Minister has approved the investment list for the programme on socio-economic development in especially disadvantaged communes in mountainous remote areas, which is usually known as Programme 135, first launched in 1998.

Of the 2,275 communes, 2,240 will receive investment sourced from the central State budget, while the other 35 in Quang Ninh, Ha Noi, Khanh Hoa and Ba Ria–Vung Tau will be subsidised from local budgets.

The most disadvantaged communes are in northern provinces of Cao Bang, Ha Giang, Lao Cai, Lang Son, Son La and Dien Bien and central Thanh Hoa Province.

The funding will be used to buy seeds for poor farmers, improve programme management capacity and develop key infrastructure.

The programme expects to help increase the average income to VND 26 million per person per year in 2020, five times higher than that of 2011. It also expects the poverty rate would reduce by 4 per cent yearly, all families can use electricity and 70 per cent of cultivation area gets enough water.

According to Co-ordination Office of Programme 135 under State Committee for Ethnic Minority and Mountainous Area Affairs, the fund is allocated based on criteria including development level, population, poverty rate, previous fund disbursement rate and accountability.

In the last two years, the programme assisted 2,331 communes with total funding of nearly VND7.8 trillion ($348 million). However, the funding allocation was the same to all localities, which is said to cause inequality and ineffectiveness.

In 2015, 80 communes from 23 provinces and cities were recognised as having fulfilled targets of the programme. They included 12 each from Binh Phuoc and Thai Nguyen, eight from Soc Trang, and seven each from Lao Cai and Tra Vinh.

The Government's Programme 135, launched in 1999 under the Prime Minister's Decision 135/1998/QD-TTg on July 31, 1998, aims to improve living conditions for rural residents with a particular focus on ethnic minority communities.

Thousands of cigarette packets seized

Police in the central province of Thanh Hoa on Monday seized 9,600 packets of imported cigarettes without related documents from a truck travelling through the province on National Highway 1A.

Dang Van Hinh, 52, owner of the cigarettes, confessed that he was transporting the goods from the Binh Dinh to Ninh Binh provinces for consumption.

The police are investigating the case.

Fire damages shops in central region

A fire that broke out at a furniture shop in Ngo Quyen Street in the central city about 3am this today (February 2) destroyed the furniture on its third floor.

Nearly 100 firefighters and 20 trucks stamped out the blaze in four hours.

The fire reportedly destroyed property worth VND1 billion (US$44,000).

According to the firemen, a short circuit probably caused the fire. Police are investigating the case further.

It's the second fire in the city this year.  

Also yesterday, another fire broke out at a motorcycle accessories and spare parts shop in the neighbouring province of Quang Nam's Dien Ban Town, completely destroying all assets.

No one was injured in the blaze.

Firefighters took four hours to clear the blaze and removed flammable equipment in the store out of the danger area.

Head of the town's public security, Colonel Le Trung Hai said the fire was the result of a short circuit.

According to the host, the fire started around 9.30am when he saw fire in a circuit breaker in the store.

The case is being investigated further.

Goods smuggling increases ahead of Tet

The market management department of the southern province of Binh Phuoc yesterday seized thousands of wine bottles illegally imported from Cambodia.

The authorities found 1,560 wine bottles labelled "Prek Pra 31 Winery", a Cambodian wine brand, and 1,920 cans of soft drinks, also of Cambodian origin, during a routine search of a truck at Tan Thanh Commune in Bu Dop District.

Hoang Nhat Truong, 26, the driver and owner of the goods, did not present any documents related to his goods.

On the same day, based on a tip from locals in the commune, Binh Phuoc police also discovered more than 2,000 wine bottles labelled with the Prek Pra 31 Winery brand, which were being loaded onto a coach for consumption.

However, the driver of the coach escaped before the police arrived.

Previously, the economic police department of Binh Phuoc had also seized nearly 5,000 wine bottles of foreign origins without import stamps.

The cases are under investigation.

In another development, police in the central province of Thanh Hoa yesterday seized 9,600 packets of imported cigarettes without related documents from a truck travelling through the province on National Highway 1A.

Dang Van Hinh, 52, the owner of the cigarettes, confessed that he was transporting the goods from the Binh Dinh to Ninh Binh provinces for consumption.

The police are investigating the case. The market management department of the southern province of Binh Phuoc yesterday seized thousands of wine bottles illegally imported from Cambodia.

Tet gifts, charitable grants for impoverished people nationwide

Localities, agencies and organisations nationwide are working together to help impoverished people enjoy a warm traditional Lunar New Year (Tet) festival.

Vice President and Secretary General of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Vu Trong Kim offered 60 Tet gift packages to impoverished households in Binh Trieu and Binh Giang communes of Thang Binh district, and presented 20 million VND (909 USD) to Hoa Binh Village in the central coastal province of Quang Nam.

The charitable grants came from the national fund for needy people and the Vietnamese Golden Heart Fund.

On the occasion, Deputy Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Le Van Thanh, the border guard station in Ky Ha Port, the Ky Ha customs department and other local authorities offered thousands of Tet gifts and grants to locals in difficult circumstances and Agent Orange/Dioxin victims.

On February 2, Prosecutor General of the Supreme People’s Procuracy Nguyen Hoa Binh visited and wished local authorities a happy new year. He also thanked enterprises who have contributed to locals’ social welfare over the past year.

Later, the province received a donation of 4.75 billion VND (216,000 USD) from local and outside enterprises to help disadvantage people in the area.

Meanwhile, the central coastal province of Quang Tri allocated 859 tonnes of rice to needy households , orphans, HIV patients, elderly people and other disadvantaged people in the locality.

The Da Nang General Hospital, the Bac Nam 79 Construction Joint Stock Company and the Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper presented 400 Tet gift packages worth 500,000 VND (227USD) each to poor patients who are receiving treatment in the hospital.

Earlier, the construction company had also given 1.75 billion VND (79,500USD) towards surgeries for children with congenital heart diseases.

The southern coastal province of Ba Ria –Vung Tau provided free buses to hundreds of impoverished workers and students who are studying or working in the locality, so they could get home to their native towns before Tet festival.

PM directs resettlement funding for Son La hydropower plant

The Prime Minister has given directions concerning funding for resettlement as part of the Son La hydropower plant project.

Accordingly, under Decision 2009/QD-TTg issued on November 4, 2013, the Electricity of Vietnam (EVN) is required to ensure that more than 2.9 trillion VND (130.5 million USD) will be distributed for resettling residents, who used to live on the sites of the hydropower plant in Son La, Dien Bien and Lai Chau.

Over 2.05 trillion VND (92.25 million USD) from the fund will be channelled into Son La, 675 billion VND (30.4 million USD) into Dien Bien, and more than 182.7 billion VND (8.2 million USD) into Lai Chau.

With a total investment of 60 trillion VND (2.7 billion USD), the Son La Hydropower Plant is capable of generating 2,400 MW. The plant was officially put into operation on December 23, 2012, after seven years of construction, three years earlier than scheduled. Once being the largest project in Southeast Asia, it is not only the pride of the country but also marks the outstanding growth of the electricity sector in Vietnam.

Nghe An hosts Tet celebration with international friends

The People’s Committee of the central province of Nghe An on February 2 held a programme to celebrate the Lunar New Year (Tet) with international friends.

Secretary of the provincial Party’s Committee Ho Duc Phoc thanked foreign experts and investors for their contributions to the province’s socio-economic development.

He also extended Tet wishes to international friends, expressing his hope that they will enjoy a successful year.

In order to promote cooperation and attract more foreign investment, the province pledges to continue speeding up administrative reforms and creating an open investment climate for foreign investors.

Last year, Nghe An gained remarkable achievements with an economic growth rate of 7.43 percent and per capita income of 29 million VND (1,260 USD).

In 2015, the province granted 162 investment certificates with a registered capital of nearly 88.4 trillion VND (3.84 billion USD).

Big investment projects include the 137.5-million-USD VSIP Nghe An Industrial-Urban-Service Park under the Vietnam-Singapore Industrial Park Joint Venture Company, and a steel sheet factory worth 230 million USD owned by Hoa Sen Group.

A number of important projects in infrastructure were also upgraded and expanded, including Vinh International Airport and Cua Lo Seaport.

In 2014, the province’s Nghe Tinh Vi-Giam folk singing was officially recognised by UNESCO as part of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.

100 bikes presented to Quang Tri police

Police officers in central Quang Tri province received 100 specialised bikes on February 2.

Bike patrol is expected to improve police health, reduce costs, and create a friendly atmosphere among the security force, locals and tourists.

The local branch of the Bank for Investment and Development of Vietnam (BIDV) sponsored the vehicles.

BIDV has thus far provided almost 2,500 police bikes for 20 provinces and cities across the country.

Religious dignitaries, OVs in Mekong Delta celebrate Tet

Religious dignitaries, artists and overseas Vietnamese met in Mekong Delta localities on February 2 to celebrate the upcoming Lunar New Year (Tet) festival.

In Can Tho City, the Vietnam Fatherland Front (VFF) Committee met with 120 religious dignitaries. They thanked the municipal authorities for providing spiritual and material support for religious followers and ethnic groups over the past year.

While in Hau Giang province, the provincial People’s Committee presented certificates of merit to 11 Vietnamese expatriates in honour of their social welfare work.

Participants were delighted with the local socio-economic achievements, including the reduction of poor households to 6.23 percent and the fulfillment of 20 socio-economic targets.

Hau Giang is home to 10,000 locals living and working abroad who sent home 60 million USD in remittances last year.

Nearly 400 OVs native to Kien Giang province also gathered in Rach Gia city to celebrate the coming Tet, the same day.

Similar activities were held in Lai Chau and Vinh Long provinces, with the press, artists and religious dignitaries taking part.

Thua Thien-Hue to promote commune post offices

The central province of Thua Thien-Hue will invest 6.3 billion VND (274,000 USD) to equip 50 commune post offices with computers, internet and books in the period from now to 2020.

The move is to ensure that each commune post office will have at least 500 book titles and four computers with internet access.

It aims to make post offices community information and communication centres to help locals update their knowledge on policies and legal documents, serving the province’s new-style rural building projects.

From 2013 to 2015, the province invested 1.6 billion VND (70,000 USD) to improve 20 commune post offices, according to the provincial Department of Information and Communications. A further 27 post offices were provided with 1.4 billion VND (61,000 USD) to upgrade and expand their facilities.

Aditionally, a project to improve computer usage and public internet access in Vietnam , funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, supported Thua Thien-Hue 280 computers at 41 public internet access sites.

The commune cultural post office (CCPO) is an important policy of Vietnam to reduce the gap between rural and urban areas and increase public access to information technology.

The programme was initiated by the Ministry of Information and Communications in 1998, aiming to provide postal and basic telecommunications services, free books and magazines for people in rural areas, especially in difficult-to-reach communes.

Expatriates in Cambodia receive gifts on Tet festival

Representatives from the Vietnamese Embassy in Cambodia presented Tet gifts to Vietnamese expatriates living in Kampong Speu province during their visit to the locality on February 2 on the occasion of the upcoming Lunar New Year (Tet) festival.

Chargé d’affaires of the Embassy Nguyen Trac Toan said the Party and State always attach importance to overseas Vietnamese communities, including those in Cambodia, affirming that they are an indispensable part of the homeland.

He advised the community to integrate into their host country as this contributes to relations between Vietnam and Cambodia.

On the same day, Metfone, a subsidiary of Vietnam’s military-run telecom group Viettel in Cambodia i n cooperation with the General Association of Vietnamese people in the country, offered 150 Tet gift packages to compatriots living in Phnom Penh.

In recent years, the embassy and Vietnamese businesses operating in Cambodia, and Vietnamese donors always arrange visits and present gifts to overseas Vietnamese living in the country, bringing a happy new year to them.

Gifu-Vietnam Friendship Association established

A Friendship Association between Vietnam and Japan’s Gifu prefecture was set up on February 1 with the aim to bolster bilateral ties.

Speaking at the event in Gifu, the Japanese prefecture’s Governor Furuta Hajime said that the establishment of the association reflected the locality’s determination to intensify comprehensive cooperation with Vietnam.

The governor said that he was impressed by the hospitality and the reforms that he witnessed during his visit to the Southeast Asian country in July 2015.

He also appreciated how leaders of several Vietnamese localities and enterprises had sought out cooperation opportunities with his prefecture.

Vietnamese Ambassador to Japan Nguyen Quoc Cuong pledged that the embassy will work with the association and Gifu authorities in boosting a bilateral multi-faceted relationship.

The diplomat and the governor discussed specific plans for 2016, including organising visits to Vietnam to seek cooperation and investment opportunities.

Ambassador Cuong also had a working session with Takashi Tsuchiya, President of the Ogaki Kyoritsu Bank (OKB), who said that many customers of the bank are interested in investing in Vietnam, particularly in industry, agriculture and forestry.

The OKB wishes to intensify cooperation with Vietnam in human resources development, he added.

Vinh Long: “Heroic mother” title bestowed on 139 women

Authorities of the Mekong Delta province of Vinh Long have presented the title of “Heroic Vietnamese Mother” to 139 women whose husbands and children laid down their lives for national liberation.

Among them, only 26 are still alive.

Speaking at the event on February 2, Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee Nguyen Van Quang expressed his gratitude for the heroic mothers and fallen soldiers for their sacrifice to the country’s revolutionary cause.

He stressed that the Party, Government and nation always respects and honours those with great devotion to the home land.

Quang asked relevant organisations to implement preferential policies in line with current regulations for people who rendered services to the country, while calling on enterprises, businesses and residents to take care of both the material and spiritual lives of these heroic mothers.

Over 16,000 people laid down their lives while thousands of others suffered wounds during struggle for national liberation and reunification. The province has nearly 2,700 recognised heroic mothers.-

VNA/VNS/VOV/SGT/SGGP/TT/TN/Dantri