The news source Nguoi Lao Dong reported on February 28th that the Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee has requested the coordination of the Planning and Investment Department, Construction Department, Natural Resources and Environment Department, Transportation Department, Finance Department, Provincial Inspectorate, and Nha Trang City People’s Committee… to provide information and documents regarding the implementation of projects and works related to Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company.
The land fund in the Nha Trang airport area has been assigned to pay for 3 BT projects of Phuc Son Group in Khanh Hoa. Photo: KY NAM
Multiple designated projects
Prior to that, the Criminal Investigation Police Department for Corruption, Economic Crimes, and Smuggling sent a document to the Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee regarding the investigation and verification of violations of the law in the fields of taxation, accounting, investment, and the implementation of projects and works at Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company and related units. To serve the investigation, this agency requested the Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee to provide and direct subordinate units to provide all relevant information, records, and documents.
Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company has 11 subsidiary companies. Since October 2016, the Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee has issued a decision to revoke 62.3 hectares of land for Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company to implement the urban center – services – finance – tourism project in Nha Trang (part of the old Nha Trang airport area) including sub-zones 2A, 2, and 3.
In 2017, Khanh Hoa province authorized project management boards to sign BT contracts for 3 transportation projects with Phuc Son Group, including Ngoc Hoi traffic interchange; connecting ring road with Ngoc Hoi traffic interchange; roads and traffic interchanges connecting to the Nha Trang airport area. The total investment of the 3 projects is 3.562 trillion VND, and the investor will fully recover more than 20 hectares of land under the project at the old Nha Trang airport. All 3 BT projects were not auctioned but were designated for Phuc Son Group.
Phuc Son Group also has 2 urban area projects: Phuc Khanh 1 (Vin Trung commune, Nha Trang City) and Phuc Khanh 2 (Dien An commune, Dien Khanh district). Phuc Khanh 1 urban area project has an area of nearly 14 hectares, while Phuc Khanh 2 urban area covers over 49 hectares and was approved with a 1/500 zoning plan in 2014 by the Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee. Despite being implemented since 2014, both locations have not completed land clearance compensation work.
Defendant Nguyen Van Hau at the police agency. Photo: MINISTRY OF PUBLIC SECURITY
Causing serious consequences
In 2004, Phuc Son Trading and Construction Company Limited was established, headquartered in Tam Phuc commune, Vinh Tuong district, Vinh Phuc province. This company operates primarily in real estate, construction, with Nguyen Van Hau (or “Hau Phao”) as Chairman of the Board of Directors and legal representative. In August 2009 and 2010, the company converted to a joint stock company model and changed its name to Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company until now.
After 20 years, Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company is known not only as a reputable enterprise in Vinh Phuc province but also in many other localities. Specifically, Hau “Phao” has developed the company by investing in and developing numerous real estate projects worth hundreds of billions to trillions of VND in Vinh Phuc, Phu Tho, Quang Ngai, Khanh Hoa… For example, the project to renovate and upgrade the Hong river embankment combined with road construction through Vinh Tuong district (Vinh Phuc province) with an investment of 1.559 trillion VND. In addition, from 2009 to 2019, Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company also participated in projects such as the Vinh Tuong market and urban area covering an area of 186.49 hectares with an investment of 2.290 trillion VND; new urban areas in Tu Trung town and Vinh Tuong town covering an area of 30.2 hectares with an investment of 1.668 trillion VND.
On February 26, the Investigation Agency, Ministry of Public Security, prosecuted the case “Serious violations of accounting regulations causing serious consequences at Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company, Thang Long Investment and Trading Joint Stock Company, and related units”.
The Investigation Agency also prosecuted and temporarily detained the defendants Nguyen Van Hau, Nguyen Thi Hang (Deputy General Director of Phuc Son Group), and 4 other individuals for the crime of “Serious violations of accounting regulations causing serious consequences”. These defendants are accused of falsifying, making false statements, keeping accounting records of revenue, assets… that caused particularly serious damage to the state.
Regarding the projects and land in the old Nha Trang airport area that showed signs of violating the law, the provincial police of Khanh Hoa Province transferred the files to the investigatory agency under the Ministry of National Defense for consideration and handling according to their jurisdiction.
Multiple violations
In June 2021, the Government Inspectorate announced the conclusion on compliance with the law in managing investment and construction of 6 BT projects using land funds for payment in the old Nha Trang airport area, Khanh Hoa province. Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company was the investor in 3 of these BT projects.
According to the Government Inspectorate, the inspection also found some existing violations. These violations include projects that have not been completed and put into operation since around the end of 2017; failure to properly implement urgent criteria to apply the form of selecting investors in special cases as prescribed in Article 26 of the Bidding Law 2013; the Khanh Hoa Provincial People’s Committee received land from the Ministry of National Defense and then handed it over to Phuc Son Group Joint Stock Company (December 2015) when there was no decision to revoke land, transfer land, lease land, which is not in accordance with Article 53 of the Land Law 2013…
