Former leader to be fired over Formosa fallout

News broke on Tuesday that a party committee had voted, asking to sack Võ Kim Cự for his responsibility in the Formosa environmental disaster last year.– Photo zing.vn

Sixty-year-old Cự is currently the Party Secretary-cum-Chairman of the Việt Nam Co-operative Alliance.

The media cited a source familiar with the Party Committee for Central Agencies Bloc (PCCAB) – charged with oversight within the Party at central-level agencies and organisations. The source, who asked not to be named, said that the PCCAB last week voted by a majority asking to fire Cự, former leader of Hà Tĩnh Province where the notorious Hưng Nghiệp Formosa is based.

Earlier in February, the Central Inspection Commission released its report in which Võ Kim Cự was said to be personally responsible for violations related to the Formosa project during his time as Hà Tĩnh’s leader.

He was the Deputy Chairman of the provincial People’s Committee and Head of Hà Tĩnh Economic Zone Management Board from 2008 to 2010. He then served as the Deputy Secretary of the provincial Party Committee, and People’s Committee chairman in the 2011-16 tenure.

Strict standards

Taiwan’s Hưng Nghiệp Formosa Hà Tĩnh Steel Corporation can only resume operation if it meets requirements to prevent more massive fish deaths in several central Vietnamese provinces, Chairman of the Government Office Mai Tiến Dũng announced on Monday.

The mass fish death started in April last year in Hà Tĩnh Province and quickly spread to other three neighbouring provinces of Quảng Bình, Quảng Trị and Thừa Thiên-Huế, killing hundreds of tonnes of fish.

Dũng said at a press briefing on Monday that Formosa had now addressed 51 out of 53 environmental violations identified in an investigation into the incident, but it would only resume operation when safety is ensured.

He stressed that the Government would always strive to create a transparent environment for businesses, but it must also ensure environmental sustainability.

Dũng added that local authorities had accelerated the payment for affected residents.

Earlier, Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc allocated an advance of VNĐ4.68 trillion (over US$207 million) for these provinces. By March 6, the localities had disbursed almost VNĐ3.6 trillion, or 76.8 per cent of the total.

By December 31 last year, concerned agencies had provided 15,027 tonnes of rice free of charge and VNĐ59 billion ($2.56 million) for fishermen as directed by the Government.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development has reported that, so far, environmental improvement in the four central provinces remains basically stable. Environmental supervision, aquatic ecological system recovery and reproduction, professional training, jobs creation and manufacturing development have all improved, according to the report.