HÀ NỘI — The Party, the Government and political apparatus as a whole is committed and determined to fight corruption, Minister and Chairman of the Government’s Office, Mai Tiến Dũng, said yesterday.

He was responding to questions raised at a press conference about several economic mismanagement trials involving high-ranking officials and executives as well as leading bankers over the last two years.

“It’s not just the serious and high profile cases, cases in remote areas are also investigated thoroughly and punishments handed out under the law in a transparent manner,” Dũng said.

He said the Government has been guiding continued investigations into huge loss-making projects and businesses.

In the context of the high-level Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) meeting set to take place in Đà Nẵng next month, Dũng stressed that the proposed disciplinary action against two key leaders, Chairman of the Đà Nẵng People’s Committee and the Party Secretary, would not bear any impact the event, explaining that the National APEC Committee was led by Deputy PM and Foreign Affairs Minister Phạm Bình Minh and Việt Nam would do its best to fulfill the role of the host country.

“Currently, ministerial level conferences and preparations for the summit are all going as planned,” Dũng said, adding that the decision on disciplinary action would be announced in due time, with security and order ensured.

On the controversial issue of new development plan proposed for the Hà Nội Railway Station and its vicinity, Deputy Transport Minister Nguyễn Ngọc Đông said city authorities were seeking opinions from ministries and sectors. The Prime Minister himself had advised caution, he noted.

Concerning the traffic aspect of the new plan that envisages more high-rise buildings, the Transport Ministry would study it and announce its findings later, Đông said.

He said that the two economic hubs of the country, Hà Nội and HCM City, were suffering from overcrowding and traffic congestion, requiring sensible management of urban space.

A general rule of the thumb is that traffic infrastructure takes up 20 per cent of total urban space, but this was just seven to eight per cent in the two cities, he said. — VNS