Vietnam fires provincial deputy over illegal promotion of female employee

Vietnam's prime minister has dismissed a provincial deputy from his position after the Communist Party's top watchdog reported multiple violations involving staff recruitments and promotions.

Ngo Van Tuan lost his position as vice chairman of Thanh Hoa Province on Thursday, one month after he was dismissed from all party positions for the same violations.

Ngo Van Tuan has been fired from his position as vice chairman of Thanh Hoa Province. Photo by VnExpress/LS.

In a report last December, the Central Inspection Committee concluded that Tuan had violated the Party’s democratic centralism principles and regulations on the appointment of local officials during his time as the province's construction chief between 2010 and 2015.

Specifically, Tuan was found to have violated recruitment regulations in order to promote Tran Vu Quynh Anh from a contract worker to a technical officer.

"In a very short time, Tuan wrongfully appointed Quynh Anh as a deputy manager, then a manager, nominated her as a department deputy director, accepted her into the Party and allowed her to join the Department of Construction's Party unit," the statement said.

Additionally, Tuan issued staff appointment criteria that violated rules set by his superiors, and appointed a number of unqualified employees to managerial positions, with Anh's appointment a prime example.

He also violated regulations on administrative reform by creating new, unnecessary units under the construction department without authorization.

Tuan's violations first drew public attention last March when local media reported Anh's "lightning fast" promotions as well as claims that she owned a villa and a luxury car.

Anh started working at Thanh Hoa's construction department as a contract worker in 2011 without having to go through the standard recruitment tests, and became a civil servant on payroll just a year later. She was promoted to deputy manager in April 2015, one year after returning from a six-month maternity leave. Despite not meeting the age or education requirements, Anh was promoted to manager just six months later, in October 2015.

However, she resigned suddenly in September 2016 after rumors about her being a provincial leader's mistress appeared on social media. Her resignation was immediately accepted but was not reported to the Department of Home Affairs or revealed to other employees.

An inspection launched in March later concluded that Tuan was responsible for Anh's promotions. Inspectors, however, have been unable to verify her assets as she is no longer a civil servant and has refused to cooperate with them.

Following the inspection, the Executive Committee of Thanh Hoa's Party unit last September decided to reprimand Tuan and expel Anh from the Party. The Communist Party's Secretariat then dismissed Tuan from all party positions in December.