Vietnam ministry pledges no cover-up in probing bribery allegations against top soccer officials

The Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports, and Tourism is cooperating with police officers to clarify the bribery accusations against two top officials of the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF) and will not cover up any wrongdoing, a ministry official has said.

>> FIFA-style scandal: Vietnam’s top soccer officials accused of taking bribes Phan Dinh Tan, chief secretariat of the ministry, made the statement in a recent interview with Tuoi Tre

(Youth) newspaper about the accusations by Nguyen Van Chuong, the former acting director of the VFF’s Youth Football Training Center, that VFF Chairman Le Hung Dung and his deputy, Tran Quoc Tuan, took a bribe of US$4,600each from him and then sacked him for an unknown reason last year.

Tan, who is also the ministry’s spokesman, said, “If the denunciation is proven to be true as it is stated in the letter of accusation, the ministry will never cover it up.”

The ministry’s point of view is that this case must be handled strictly so that the wrongdoers, if any, must be punished and innocent people are not wrongfully convicted, he added.

The sports ministry has assigned its agencies to work with the Ministry of Public Security to look into the bribery allegations, whereas Chuong’s claim that he was dismissed for an unknown reason must be taken into consideration with help from the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids, and Social Affairs, Tan said.

Speaking to Tuoi Tre, Cao Ngoc Cam, chief secretariat of the VFF, said, “The VFF terminated the labor contract with Chuong in accordance with applicable regulations.”

The VFF has hired a lawyer and is not afraid of appearing in court with Chuong, Cam said.

Both VFF Chairman Dung and his deputy Tuan have rejected Chuong’s accusations.

“The accusations are wrong. I will ask competent agencies to clarify them,” Tuan said.

Meanwhile, Dung told Tuoi Tre on Sunday that Chuong’s denunciation is a made-up story.

“The fact that Chuong accused me of receiving VND100 million from him is a fabrication and slander against me,” Dung said.

Those who make wrong accusations or slander against others will be punished by law, he added.

In his complaint, Chuong said he was appointed acting director of the VFF’s Youth Football Training Center on September 23, 2013.

On July 3, 2014, the VFF leaders transferred him to the position of deputy head of the Amateur Football Department, while Chuong wanted to be rotated to the National Squads Department.

Chuong claimed that Tuan had suggested he offer a bribe if he wanted to be transferred to that department.

Therefore, the former acting director gave a bribe of VND100 million each to Dung and Tuan at their homes on August 28, 2014 and July 15, 2014 respectively, according to Chuong’s complaint.

In May 2015, about 10 months after receiving the VND100 million, Tuan returned the amount to him, Chuong said, adding he did not know why.

On June 1, 2015, the VFF fired Chuong for an unknown reason, along with a number of others, the accuser complained.

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