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Thứ Năm, 7 tháng 7, 2011

Vietnamese historian becomes member of French Institute

Professor Phan Huy Le
Photo: Tuoitre

TUOI TRE

Professor Phan Huy Le, Chairman of the Vietnam Association of Historical Sciences, has become the first Vietnamese to be a member of the prestigious French Institute’s Académie des inscriptions et belles-lettres (Academy of Humanities).
The professor told Tuoi Tre that he felt honored and surprised to be named the academy’s Foreign Corresponding Member since he didn’t know anything about the nomination.
Born in 1934 in the central province of Ha Tinh, Le graduated from Hanoi University in 1956 and worked for its History department. He received the professor’s title in 1980 and was awarded the People’s Teacher honor in 1994.
He was the first Vietnamese to receive the Fukuoka Asian Cultural Prize from Japan in 1996 and helped to compile the dossier for Doctoral Steles at the Temple of Literature to be recognized by UNESCO as a World Heritage.
Founded in 1663, the French Academy of Humanities is one of the five academies of the French Institute, a learned society that runs about 1,000 foundations and awarded numerous prizes.
The academy’s Foreign Corresponding Members are often members of the most prestigious academies in their own countries as well as outstanding scholars in the world.

Giving a final make-up to old walls

Dem(L) and Seth (M) in front of their work of art
Photo: Tuoi Tre

TUOI TRE

It may appear like a fool’s errand, but for Seth and Dem, decorating soon-to-be-demolished walls in Ho Chi Minh City with beautiful graffiti is a meaningful thing. 

The two French graffiti artists have been searching HCMC for walls that will soon be pulled down just to give them a final make-up. One may ask, “Why bother?” Seth and Dem would say creating beauty, even for very brief moments, is worthwhile. 

Carrying bright paint to construction sites, they have thus drawn many lovely images - from a Vietnamese girl in a pink traditional dress to a young woman standing next to lotuses – that have made observers smile and lighten their mood. 

Nguyen Thi Lun, who has had her house painted on the front and back walls, said though she was waiting to move to another place, she felt so happy to see beautiful graffiti every time she goes in and out of the house that she will soon leave. 
Seth and Dem would consider such a reaction from observers one of their greatest rewards. 

It is indeed their hope to share their sense of beauty with others that has made them travel all over the world to draw graffiti. 

For 20 years, Seth, or Julien Malland, a graduate of the National School of Decorative Arts in France, has been carrying his brushes and spray cans to streets in America, Brazil, China, Indonesia, India, and South Africa to draw graffiti showing the beauties of the native culture he sets foot on. It may be an Indian woman wearing a sewing machine on her head, a boy eating popcorns in front of a Mumbai grocer, a couple dancing waltz in Buenos Aires, girls and characters from comic books in Japan, or sunny beaches in Rio de Janeiro.

Whatever idea he may have, Seth would take care that it should be expressed in the most unobtrusive place – walls that will soon to be demolished – because if people don’t like what he draws, they won’t have to look at it for long. 

In France, he is paid to do this. In Vietnam, where nobody pays him for his art work, Seth, and his close friend, Dem, are still showing local residents beautiful decorations. 

For them, who are in HCMC only for a short while under an invitation by the French Consulate, this is one a way to leave their memories in the minds of those who would remember their lovely graffiti even after the walls have all been pulled down.


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Prices drop thanks to policy, lower exchange rate

Photo: Tuoi Tre

TUOI TRE

Prices have been dropping across the board as the government’s stabilization policy has set in and the US dollar-dong exchange rate is going down.
Co.op Mart, Vietnam’s leading retailer, said many powdered milk firms have reduced their prices by 3 to 5 percent while others have been maintaining the same prices but increasing product weights for the past two weeks.
Vietnam’s largest diary producer Vinamilk said it will increase the weight per box of its Dielac Alpha powdered milk by 15 percent without changing the price as of July 1.
This will help consumers save VND10,000 on each box, Vinamilk said.
Essence wash liquid producers are also giving consumers an extra 500ml on every two-liter bottle.
Prices of imported confectionary products have also gone down by 2 to 3 percent while cosmetics producers opt to offer customers gifts as discounts.
Nguyen Phuong Thao, director of Maximark Cong Hoa in Ho Chi Minh City’s Tan Binh District, said many producers working with her supermarket have also announced their plans to reduce prices.
Besides providing consumers with direct discounts, many producers are now working with supermarkets to launch promotional programs, hoping to increase summer sales by up to 15 percent.
Big C said it will kick off its biggest sales of this year during the summer with discounts of up to 50 percent on over 4,000 products.
As input costs for poultry farming have recently gone down by 7 percent, and demand is low, the HCMC Department of Finance has also asked producers to reduce poultry meat prices by VND2,000-7,000 per kg as part of its price stabilization campaign.
After poultry meat prices soared by VND20,000 per kg in the first six months of this year, many market goers said the price reduction is making things easier for them.
According to the management board of Tan Xuan Market in Hoc Mon District, fruits and vegetables have also been priced down as there is a large supply of these products everyday.
Many expensive products like spinaches, cabbages and carrots at this market have also fallen by 20 to 40 percent per kg.

Old couple dies in hit-and-run accident (Video)

TUOI TRE

An old coupled was killed in a hit-and-run accident at a busy T-junction in the central province of Nghe An Thursday morning.
ROLL DOWN TO WATCH THE VIDEO
Eyewitnesses said as the couple was heading to Nguyen Van Cu Street from Doc Thiet Street, a truck traveling on Nguyen Van Cu suddenly crashed into their motorbike and killed them on the spot.
The deceased were Dau Dinh Bau, 76, and his wife Nguyen Thi Ninh, 70.
The police said the truck driver fled the scene after causing the accident. 

Chief editor arrested; reason not yet announced



TUOI TRE

Gia Lai Province’s Police on Monday arrested Nguyen Manh Thang, the former chief editor of Doanh Nghiep & Thuong Hieu (Business & Brand Name) Magazine but are yet to announce the reason of the arrest. 

The arrest was conducted at 7 pm on July 4 at Thang’s Café at 44 Tran Quy Cap Street in Gia Lai's capital city of Pleiku.
Tien Phong cited a source saying Thang was suspected of being involved in the shooting of a police official at Gia Trung Prison. 

Ngo Xuan Thanh was shot injured at New Life Bar in Pleiku on February 13 by an underground gang from the northern city of Hai Phong. 

Thang, 35, is a native of Nam Dinh Province and a permanent resident of Hanoi. He has been working in journalism since last July and recently moved to Gia Lai to make business investments.

Doanh Nghiep & Thuong Hieu where Thang worked as the chief editor was under the management of the Vietnam Association of Rural Small- and Medium-sized Enterprises.
The magazine stopped operation in early June under a decision of Gia Lai Province’s Department of Information and Communications.

Jailed official gets 7 more years for power abuse

Bui Tien Dung at court yesterday
Photo: Tuoi Tre

TUOI TRE

Bui Tien Dung, former general director of the Ministry of Transport’s Project Management Unit 18 (PMU18), who is serving 16 years in prison for bribery and other crimes, has been given 7 more years for abusing position and power on duty.

After 9 days of trial, the Hanoi People’s Court yesterday handed down the sentences to Dung and 8 others.

The guilty were Nguyen Vu Nam, former head of the Project Initiation Department No. 6 (PID 6); Nguyen Cong Dung, a former PID 6 expert; Nghiem Phu Son, former deputy head of PID 6; Le Minh Giang, former deputy head of PID 5; Nguyen Huu Minh, former executive director of the Bai Chay 1 (BC1) bid; Nguyen Huu Long, former executive director of the BC3 bid; Tran Duc Hung, chief of the consulting office for the project; and Do Kim Quy, a former deputy general director of PMU 18.

Except Quy, who was charged with “using assets illegally acquired by others,” the other defendants were charged with embezzlement. 

The court gave 2 years of suspended imprisonment to Quy, 9 years in prison for Nam, 7 years for Son, 6 years for Nguyen Cong Dung and Giang each, 5 years for Long, 4 years for Minh, and 3 years for Hung.
Bui Tien Dung and his accomplices were found guilty of siphoning off nearly VND3.5 billion (US$165,500) from the ODA-funded Bai Chay Bridge in Quang Ninh Province.
According to the indictment by the Supreme People’s Procuracy, in 1998, PMU18, then led by Dung, was assigned to develop the bridge project. 

Dung and his accomplices then signed false consulting agreements and prepared false payrolls of consulting engineers to pocket $165,500 when carrying out that project from March 2003 to February 2007.
Dung used VND500 million ($24,300) from the amount as a “send-off gift” to Quy who was about to retire and Quy accepted the money though he knew it was illegal.

Quy handed over the VND500 million to the police after they began investigating Dung’s wrongdoings.
In November 2007, Dung was sentenced to 13 years in prison for gambling and bribery.

In August 2010 he was given an additional three years for “deliberately acting against the State’s economic management regulations, causing serious consequences.”

Benz or Bentley: Vietnam car sales on the rise

A woman sells flowers in a Hanoi street
Photo: AFP

AFP

A young woman in a tight silver dress posed on the front of a black Audi A6 sedan at a Hanoi auto show, hoping to entice buyers.
Luxury cars are increasingly irresistible for many Vietnamese, say industry players who report rising sales even as daily life becomes harder for the majority struggling to cope with one of the world's highest rates of inflation.
Audi's A6, launched at the Vietnam Auto Expo last month, costs almost $142,000 -- which would take the average Vietnamese worker 182 years to earn.
Yet Mercedes-Benz, Lexus, Audi and other high-end brands are increasingly common on the narrow streets of Hanoi, where they vie for space with the motorcycles which are standard transport for most people.
Even more exclusive names including Bentley and Rolls-Royce can be spotted, leading to concerns about growing social inequality.
"We have been doubling our sales every year and I think we'll do the same again," said Laurent Genet, general director of Automotive Asia Ltd, Audi's official importer to Vietnam.
Ford, Toyota, Mercedes-Benz and others have been assembling vehicles in Vietnam for several years.
But only since the country joined the World Trade Organization in 2007 has the market been open to official importers, Genet said, meaning it is still in its infancy and attracting an increasing number of brands.
Auto Motors Vietnam, the official Renault importer, arrived in Vietnam late last year with its Koleos, which retails for 1.429 billion dong ($68,048).
"Sales have started pretty well from the beginning," said managing director Xavier Casin.
France's Citroen returned to Vietnam this year and Range Rover, which has been in the country for three years, says sales are up by about 50 percent in 2011 -- even though its models at the Hanoi show retailed for about $200,000.
"Land Rover is very expensive. The market knows that," said sales manager Tran Nhat Tu.
The Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers' Association reported a year-on-year increase of almost 38 percent in car and SUV-style vehicle sales for the first four months of 2011.
The increase comes despite an economy beset by a high trade deficit, a struggling currency and inflation that has risen every month since last August.
With inflation running at 21 percent in June, ordinary people -- whose average monthly salary is 1,365,000 dong ($65) -- have been cutting back on expenses.
As part of efforts to stabilise the economy the central bank wants growth in credit to stay below 20 percent this year, with lenders limiting the proportion of loans for "non-productive sectors", notably property and stocks.
But the restrictions have not affected the high-end car market, said Genet.
"In our case we are selling expensive cars for people who don't really need financing," he said. "For them it's prestige. It's almost an investment."
Tran Minh Tuan, 28, is an example. The real estate trader visited the auto show thinking of upgrading from a less-prestigious brand to Audi.
"The car you drive shows your social class, your identity," he said.
"I think the demand for luxury cars in Vietnam has always been high. Although the economy sometimes is not good, there are still a lot of people who have money, who want to change to more expensive cars."
In 1986 communist Vietnam began to turn away from a planned economy to embrace the free market, a policy which led to growth among the fastest in Asia.
Despite recent economic instability the growth has continued, inevitably bringing with it the "conspicuous consumption" evident in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, said John Hendra of the United Nations.
"The wealth gap is rising between the rich and the poor," he said in May before ending his term as UN country director.
But while displays of wealth are sometimes a sign of success, many ordinary Vietnamese doubt the money was acquired honestly, said Matthieu Salomon, international senior adviser for Towards Transparency, the local affiliate of global anti-corruption organisation Transparency International.
Saloman said a survey by his group, due for release in August, found that about a quarter of urban Vietnamese youth believe people are most likely to succeed if they are not following the rules.
Hanoi's Young Business Association recently told a World Bank-backed forum that the "supercars and expensive houses" of a few rich people reflect waste, bureaucracy and corruption in public spending.
For most Vietnamese, a car is still out of reach and the auto show was a chance for people like state employee Nguyen Tuan Hung, 37, to fantasise.
"I drive a motorcycle," he said. "I don't have money to buy a car. But of course, I dream of buying one."

Thứ Ba, 5 tháng 7, 2011

Phu Quoc dogs attend world canine show 2011


TUOI TRE

Two Phu Quoc ridgeback dogs will attend the FCI (Fédération Cynologique Internationale) World Dog Show 2011 to be held in Paris from July 7-10.
A Phu Quoc ridgeback named Đốm, a breed of dog from Phu Quoc Island off the Vietnamese southern province of Kien Giang, was sent to Paris on Monday night.
Another one named Vện (stripes) is also expected to join Đốm (spots) in the coming days.
This year’s world dog show has attracted canines of all breeds from 130 countries and territories as part of activities to celebrate FCI’s 100th founding anniversary.
At the international dog show held in Belgium’s Anvers city in July, 1894, two Phu Quoc dogs Xoai (Mango) and Chuoi (Banana) were priced at 25,000 Belgian franc, 200 – 250 times more expensive than other four-legged contestants.
The World Dog Show is a sanctioned international dog show, held annually since 1971.
The show features skills of man’s best friends including agility, obedience, emotion, in addition to other dog-related events and demonstrations.

Fujifilm aims to be world No. 3 in cameras



REUTERS

Japan's Fujifilm aims to become the world's fourth largest camera maker by next March and the No. 3 manufacturer two years later, overtaking first rival Samsung and then Nikon, a senior company executive said.
Until recently best known for inexpensive models, Fujifilm may also re-enter the more lucrative interchangeable lens camera market from which it withdrew in 2009, Takeshi Higuchi, head of the company's camera division, said in an interview with Reuters on Monday.
The launch of a 'mirrorless' camera, which has an electronic viewfinder, making it lighter and more compact than a professional-style single-lens reflex camera, would be an extension of Fujifilm's effort to move upmarket and would put it in direct competition with Sony.
Earlier this year it launched the Finepix X100 high-end compact, which is made in Japan and sells for about 120,000 yen (US$1,480).
Higuchi insisted the company would have no problems developing a mirrorless camera or the required lenses by itself, denying the possibility of another acquisition in the industry.
Last week copier and printer maker Ricoh, which also has a compact camera division, announced it was buying the Pentax camera business from Hoya.
Fujifilm, which makes a wide range of products from medical equipment to cosmetics, barely broke even on cameras last year, but Higuchi plans to pull the business firmly into the black this year with production cost cuts and a marketing push that he says will keep unit prices higher.
"We can do all the important development in-house, so we can use that to cut costs, but we don't have a very high-profile brand," Higuchi said. "We have debated why that is and the upshot was we should put out luxury models and spend more on publicity to build up the brand."
In digital still camera unit sales, Fujifilm says it is currently in fifth position behind Canon, Sony, Nikon and Samsung, but adds it is confident that its plan to boost sales 25 percent to 14 million units this financial year will gain it the No. 4 spot.
Apart from the Finepix X100, all the company's camera production is concentrated in China, but Fujifilm is planning to spread risk by starting some production in Southeast Asia, said Higuchi, adding that Thailand looked promising.
"We do feel a risk in China in terms of wages and the high staff turnover," Higuchi said. "We will seek a production site outside China," he added.
A decision will be made on the location by the end of the financial year, he said. The firm is also conducting feasibility studies in Vietnam, Malaysia and the Philippines. Current production levels in China will be maintained, he said.
($1 = 80.835 Japanese Yen)

Dolphins artificially propagated, to be on sale



TUOI TRE

Can Tho University in cooperation with An Giang Aquatic Breeding Center has succeeded in artificially propagating freshwater dolphins and expect to sell them this October.

Freshwater or river dolphin is an aquatic creature that primarily comes to spawn in the upstream of Tien and Hau rivers in An Giang and Dong Thap provinces.

They fetch quite high a price, approximately VND400,000 – 500,000/kg.


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Vietnam delays lethal injection plan

A bed specially designed for execution by lethal injection in the US (Dan Tri)
Photo: Dan Tri


TUOI TRE

Vietnam was supposed to execute the condemned by lethal injection as of July 1 instead of the firing squad but the plan has been delayed, probably until September.

The switch to lethal injection was passed by the legislature National Assembly last year but Ministry of Public Security has proposed a delay until September 1 for some preparations.

The ministry has submitted the postponement plan to the National Assembly’s Justice Committee, blaming it on “unavailable conditions” for the injections.

According to Le Thi Nga, deputy chairperson of the Committee, facilities for lethal injection need to be set up and executioners also need to be trained in the new method.

Relevant agencies are also stepping up the completion of a decree to guide the implementation of the Law, the official said.

Under the Law on Execution of Criminal Verdicts that took effect from July 1, Vietnam will carry out the death penalty using lethal injection.

The Committee urged the ministry to step up its preparations so that lethal injection can be applied as soon as possible.

The ministry has submitted a plan to build lethal injection facilities to the Prime Minister for approval.

Due to the delay, the schedule for execution will also be postponed until September, Nga said.


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Entrance exams off to good start

An anxious expression on the face of a candidate in Ho Chi Minh City after he finished his physics test yesterday afternoon
Photo: Tuoi Tre

TUOI TRE


HA NOI — Nearly 700,000 candidates nationwide yesterday began the first day of the university entrance examinations throughout Viet Nam.
This accounted for 77 per cent of the total applicants who had registered for the exam, according to the Ministry of Education and Training.
Nguyen Thai Tan, a candidate for the Ha Noi University of Science and Technology, from Nam Dinh Province's Giao Thuy C High School, said the two exams he did, maths and physics, were not so difficult as last year.
"I hope that the chemistry exam tomorrow will be the same," he said, adding that he would possibly not take second phase exams (second sitting) although he had applied for another university because he was satisfied with what he did.
Tan's brother-in-law said that he took a day off from work to collect his brother on time and take him to the exam.
"We left our inn, which was about 15km away from the testing destination, at 5am to avoid traffic," he said.
Another candidate, Bui Cong Huan from Ha Noi's Thuong Tin High School, said that he did not have enough time to finish the maths test, but felt it easier to complete the physics exam.
Hundreds of candidates' relatives and friends sat or stood outside the exam centres nervous, worried – but always hopeful.
Doan Thi Loan from northern Vinh Phuc Province said her son sat for exams at the University of Construction.
She was a bit worried as her son said the maths test in the morning was difficult, but she kept encouraging him.
Lieutenant Colonel Tran Ngoc Anh from Ha Noi Police said that during the exams, the city banned trucks and large coaches from travelling on inner streets around exam centres on Giai Phong, Truong Chinh, Nguyen Trai, and Pham Ngoc Thach.
Last Saturday and Sunday, more than 50,000 university candidates and their relatives went to Van Mieu (Literature Temple) to pray for good luck.
The 1,000-year-old temple is a Confucian symbol for study. It's believed that praying there and touching stone turtles' heads can bring candidates good luck. However, touching the turtles is now banned.
In HCM City, at the University of Finance and Marketing's venue at Le Quy Don High School in District 3, 83 per cent of the applicants appeared.
At Foreign Trade University No2 in HCM City, Nguyen Xuan Minh, head of the examination supervision board, said that 62.5 per cent of the candidates attended the exam's first day.
At least 83 per cent of the total applicants attended the exam's first day at the University of Pedagogy.
Do Quoc Anh, head of the ministry's HCM City-based representative office, said the exams went smoothly. The university entrance examination is divided into two stages, one from July 4-5 and the other from July 9-10.
Total applicants for university and college examinations are close to 2 million.
Truong Thi Thuong, a disabled candidate for Da Nang's University of Pedagogy from central Quang Nam Province's Dai Loc District, was told she would be considered to be admitted to the university without having to sit for the exam.
The Ministry of Education and Training's initial evaluation showed that authorities had kept secret the contents of the maths and physics tests.
In the physics test which took place yesterday afternoon, the number of candidates was reported to have been 0.58 per cent less than the maths test, which had taken place in the morning.
Officials said that some candidates might have been disappointed with their performance in the morning and decided not to sit the afternoon exam, while others might have been using the opportunity to practise ahead of their official university entrance examinations, which would take place over the next few days.
Invigilation was strictly tightened and violations of exam regulations were found and stamped out.

Sa Huynh jar tombs discovered in Quang Ngai

The archaeologists said initial research suggested these tombs belonged to the Sa Huynh culture.
Photo: Tuoi Tre

TUOI TRE

Ten jar tombs dating back to 3,000 years ago were discovered in the central province of Quang Ngai on Monday.
Archaeologists from Quang Ngai General Museum found the tombs after 2 months excavating an 80-square-meter site around Nuoc Trong Lake.
The archaeologists said initial research suggested these tombs belonged to the Sa Huynh culture.
Sa Huynh Culture flourished in central and southern Vietnam over 2,500 years ago and was one of the three cradles of civilization in Vietnam besides Oc Eo and Dong Son cultures.
A unique characteristic of Sa Huynh people was their funeral rites in which the deceased were cremated and their ashes were placed in jars for burial.

Vietnam c.bank cuts a benchmark rate to 14 pct


REUTERS

Vietnam's central bank has cut the interest rate it charges for loans in open market operations (OMO) by 100 basis points to 14 percent, its daily OMO report showed on Monday, after the monthly inflation rate last month eased slightly from May.
The State Bank of Vietnam had raised the reverse repurchase rate in its daily open market operations by 100 basis points to 15 percent on May 17. 

The move surprised some economists.
"If they ease too early, it will trigger inflationary pressures in Q1 next year, so the CPI would not fall as much as it may have," said Francois Chavasseau, a fixed income analyst at Sacombank Securities.
"The move could also mean that the Vietnamese government still cares about growth finally," he said, adding his firm had expected a reduction to take place later this year.
The authorities have recently stressed the fight against inflation rather than efforts to stoke economic growth.
Last Thursday the government said it would strive to contain inflation this year to 15-17 percent, raising its target for the second time in June from the 15 percent set on June 3.
The annual inflation rate topped 20 percent in June, the highest since November 2008, but the monthly consumer price rise dropped to 1.09 percent compared with May, after 2.21 percent between April and May.
The government has also cut its GDP growth forecast to 6 percent from 6.5 percent.
The International Monetary Fund said in June that interest rates ought to be increased, warning at an aid donors' meeting that confidence in the government's policies was fragile.
However, some economists said Monday's move might simply reflect liquidity flows.
"The OMO rate reduction means liquidity is better," said economist Vo Tri Thanh at the Central Institute for Economic Management, a government think-tank.
Vietnamese banks faced a liquidity squeeze for both dong and dollars when dong deposits fell this year.
"Overall, the national target is to tighten monetary policy but the management also depends on the time and day-to-day issues," Thanh said.
Other key rates were left unchanged, including the refinance rate and the discount rate, which were increased 100 basis points at the end of April to 14 percent and 13 percent respectively.
ANZ said it expected the central bank to raise its refinancing rate to 16 percent as early as September from 14 percent now.

Funding shortage threatens history magazine


TUOI TRE


The Thua Thien – Hue Association of Historical Sciences has asked the provincial People’s Committee to suspend the publication of its magazine Hue Xua va Nay (Hue – The Past and the Present) at the end of this year because of a lack of money.
Launched in 1992, the magazine, with one edition every two months, has become one of Vietnam’s most prestigious history magazines.
It has published 105 editions, each of which is 100 to 150 pages.
The magazine, whose staffs are made up of an editor-in-chief and 3 administrators and technicians, is housed inside Phu Xuan University.
According to Le Van Thuyen, Secretary General of the association, the provincial People’s Committee provides the magazine a total VND50-105million (US$2500-5250) per year which is only enough to pay for the publication of 6 editions.
The association itself has cover the rest including staffs’ salaries, contributors’ royalties and administrative fees.
The provincial People’s Committee however hasn’t made its decision.
“We are still looking into the problem”, Nguyen Van Cao, Chairman of Thua Thien – Hue Province’s People’s Committee told Tuoi Tre on Monday.

Thứ Hai, 4 tháng 7, 2011

Da Nang firm vanishes after win-a-car scam


TUOI TRE

Dai Phat company in Da Nang City has in the past month cheated hundreds off up to VND20 million (US$975) each by falsely informing them that they have won a car and must deposit a certain sum to secure the jackpot.

The victims said that they bought electrical and electronic items from some people who came to their houses and introduced themselves as marketing officers of Dai Phat.

These ‘marketers’ promised that if they bought some goods from Dai Phat they would have a chance to win a car under the company’s sales promotional program.

Some days after their purchase, someone claiming themselves as Dai Phat’s staff called them to inform they had won a car worth VND380-500 million ($18,500-$24,400).

The ‘winners’ were then asked to transfer VND10-20 million to a designated account as fee for car registration before getting it at the office of Dai Phat on the second floor of the SAVICO building at 66 Vo Van Tan Street, Thanh Khe District, Da Nang City.

But no prize was forthcoming and the ‘company’ in fact is not located inside SAVICO.

One of the last victims is N.H.Q. from District 12, Ho Chi Minh City, who transferred VND20 million to an account at Eximbank but is yet to lay hands on the VND380 million promised car.

Hundreds of people have called SAVICO from Ho Chi Minh City and other localities to ask how they could get the car from Dai Phat, said Le Dinh Tuan, head of maintenance at the SAVICO building.

But SAVICO confirmed that there was no company named Dai Phat located there, Tuan revealed.


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US multi-level nutrition seller disappears


TUOI TRE

Agel Vietnam, a Hanoi-based company selling nutritional supplements under the multi-level marketing model, has reneged on pledged commissions and failed to deliver purchased products after having inexplicably vanished from the Vietnamese market.
The company is 90% US-invested with the remaining stakes sourced from Vietnamese investors.

T.H.V, an Agel Vietnam’s agent for the southern region, said that by now - a few months after the mysterious disappearance, many small dealers have neither received their commissions nor the products which they have bought.

Chu Thi My Huong, a multilevel leader with more than 23,000 members in her network, said the total loss of members in her pyramid is VND3 billion (US$150,000).

She said hundreds of other network leaders have suffered similar losses.

Since its establishment in mid 2008 as a distributor of Agel products from the US, Agel Vietnam soon enjoyed reputation as one of the most successful companies in multi-level marketing.

Although the price of an Agel’s product can be as high as VND1.5 million (US$75), thousands of customers were willing to pay VND20.3 million ($1,000) to buy 16 products at wholesale prices to become a member in this multi-level network.

Like any other multi-level companies, members in Agel’s network had to convince more people to join their networks to increase accrued profits.

Tuoi Tre found out that Agel Vietnam had rented the house at 73, Trang Thi Street, Hanoi to set up its headquarters in 2008.

But in February this year, Agel Vietnam abruptly ended its house renting contract, emptied its headquarters and disappeared.

New, unlicensed offshoot

After Agel Vietnam’s shut down, many of its leaders shifted to working for Qivana Vietnam, another multi-level marketing company which also sells nutritional supplements.

The new head of Qivana Vietnam is Hoang Hai Yen, who used to be head of Agel Vietnam.

Qivana Vietnam has its headquarters in HCMC and its main products are some nutritional supplements with prices of up to VND1.2 million per box.

With the same strategy as Agel Vietnam, Qivana Vietnam also urges its dealers to buy its products when they still do not know much about them.

A representative of the HCMC Department of Industry and Trade told Tuoi Tre that the department has not licensed Qivana to run as a multi-level marketing company.

Earlier in June, the Department suspended Tran Hoang Corporation for operating an illegal seminar to convince people to join its multi-level marketing program to sell Qivana’s products.


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