Vietnam fires head of shipbuilding group over mismanagement

Jul 14, 2010, 8:42 GMT

Hanoi - Vietnam's government fired the head of one of the country's largest state-owned enterprises for alleged mismanagement that led the company to the brink of bankruptcy, officials and state media said Wednesday.

Pham Thanh Binh, chairman of Vietnam Shipbuilding Industry Group (Vinashin), was suspended from his post by Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung Tuesday for irresponsibility in managing the company and using state capital.

A review of his performance is to take place and police are to carry out an investigation into alleged wrongdoing, the government said.

Vinashin, as of the end of June, had total assets of 90 trillion dong (4.8 billion dollars), but logged debts of more than 80 trillion dong, the government said.

The Communist Party's Central Inspection Committee earlier this month accused Vinashin of dishonesty in reporting its financial difficulties to the government. It also said Vinashin established nearly 200 subsidiaries outside the shipbuilding sector, a violation of regulations for state-run enterprises that are only allowed to do business in certain sectors.

In a move to rescue Vinashin from bankruptcy, the premier last month decided to restructure the company by moving some Vinashin subsidiaries - and 20 trillion dong worth of debt - to other state enterprises such as Vietnam Oil and Gas Group (Petrovietnam) and Vietnam National Shipping Lines Corp (Vinalines).