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Vietnam holds national ceremony to mark President Ho Chi Minh’s 130th birthday

Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong addresses the ceremony in Hanoi on May 18 (Photo: VNA)

The ceremony was held at the National Convention Centre in Hanoi on May 18 to mark the 130th birthday of late President Ho Chi Minh (May 19, 1890-2020), VNA reported.

Party General Secretary and State President Nguyen Phu Trong told the gathering that President Ho is a symbol of patriotism and revolutionary heroism.

He was the crystallization of the morality, knowledge, mettle, and conscience of the nation and the era, Trong said.

President Ho devoted his entire life to the glorious revolutionary cause of the Vietnamese Party and people and international friends, he went on, stressing that his fame and career will forever be in the hearts of Vietnamese people and humankind.

He passed down a valuable ideological heritage and is a shining example of morality and lifestyle to the Vietnamese Party and people, Trong said.

Recalling the late President’s glorious life and revolutionary career, he said President Ho’s thoughts are a comprehensive and profound system of views on basic matters in Vietnam’s revolution and are the result of the innovative application and development of Marxism-Leninism to Vietnam’s specific conditions and the promotion of traditional values and the absorption of humankind’s cultural quintessence.

His thoughts are also a precious spiritual asset of the Vietnamese Party and people that forever light up the revolutionary cause of the Party and people from victory to victory and contribute to the common struggle of nations around the world for peace, national independence, democracy, and social progress.

The founder and mentor of the Party, President Ho always paid special attention to Party building, in order to make it a truly revolutionary Party that has morals and is civilized.

Party General Secretary Trong quoted President Ho’s call for efforts to preserve and consolidate solidarity and consensus within the Party, saying that Party building and rectification must be in tandem with the building of the State of the people, by the people, and for the people, and the building of socialist democracy.

President Ho is a shining example and model of revolutionary morality, the senior leader said, and he urged officials, Party members, and the people to follow his teachings and examples to perfect themselves.

Trong pointed out the tasks ahead: continuing to enhance the building and rectification of the Party and the entire political system, making them pure and strong in politics, ideology, organisation and morality; and improving the leadership, governance and combat capacity of the Party and building a socialist State ruled by law, “of the people, by the people, and for the people.”

It is necessary to promote the close-knit relations between the Party and the people, build the Party based on the people, promote the people’s democracy and right to ownership, and preserve solidarity and consensus with the Party, he said.

“In following President Ho’s instructions on enhancing revolutionary morality and sweeping away individualism, we need to resolutely, persistently, and actively purify the Party, prevent and drive back corruption, degradation in political ideology, morality and lifestyle of officials and Party members, and phenomena such as ‘self-evolution’ and ‘self-transformation’ within the Party,” he stressed.

Trong called for greater efforts to complete targets and tasks, first of all dealing with the adverse impacts of COVID-19, ensuring social welfare while optimising opportunities to fulfil socioeconomic development tasks in 2020, thus successfully completing tasks set for the Party’s 12th tenure and the 2021-2020 period and preparing and organising all-level Party congresses towards the 13th National Party Congress.

7NEWS Australia runs 5-minute-news praising Vietnam's efforts on COVID-19 combat

The well-known Australia-based 7NEWS Australia channel has recently taken over five minutes during its daily latest headlines to praise Vietnam’s efforts on COVID-19 fight.

The news cited some queries that the figures could be fake and the exact number of COVID-19 situation in Vietnam that it may be much higher than the reports. However, the interview with Matt Young, who is from Ho Chi Minh City-based Australia Vietnam Chamber of Commerce (AusCham) blew the doubts away and verified the real situation in Vietnam.

During the interview with 7NEWS, Young affirms that the “figures are very much real”, adding he feels safe and lucky. According to the Australian economist, such achievements are the result of moving so quickly to tame the coronavirus in the very early stage such as series of measures that took place such as closing borders with China, quarantining COVID-19 positive casesas well as adopting social distancing measures.

Foreigners stuck in country due to COVID-19 can stay until June 30

Illustrative photo.

The Immigration Department of Vietnam has announced on May 18 that international arrivals who have been stuck in Vietnam due to the COVID-19 pandemic can have their visas extended automatically until June 30.

foreigners entering the country under visa waiver programs, e-visas, or tourism visas from March 1 onwards will be automatically given stay permit extension until June 30 without any charges.

For those entering the country from March 1 backward, they will also be granted the visa extension providing that they can prove being stranded due to Covid-19.

This means from now until June 30, they can stay or leave the country without doing any paperwork.

Promoting casino services as a means of economic recovery after COVID-19

In the eyes of investors, Vietnam boasts huge potential in casinos given its population of nearly 100 million and rising incomes.

The Vietnam Association of Foreign Invested Enterprises (VAFIE) has suggested the development of casino services as a means of economic recovery, VNA cited a document submitted to the Government.

Casino tables and gaming machines are currently in operation at 43 hotels and resorts around Vietnam, with the size of the market doubling since a legal framework on casino operations was issued.

The casino sector, however, has yet to meet its socioeconomic potential, according to VAFIE President Nguyen Mai.

In the eyes of investors, Vietnam boasts huge potential in casinos given its population of nearly 100 million and rising incomes.

Vietnamese people spend some 3 billion USD a year on lotteries and 1 billion USD on gambling overseas. The country also attracts millions of tourists each year, and many would like the opportunity to gamble at casinos.

Despite its long border with China, Vietnam has recorded just over 300 COVID-19 cases, with no deaths.

The nation has to date recorded no locally-transmitted infections for 32 days in a row.

Vietnam jumps 14 places in Open Budget Survey

Vietnam jumps 14 places in Open Budget Survey.

The Open Budget Survey (OBS) 2019 from the International Budget Partnership (IBP) ranks Vietnam 77th out of 117 countries around the world, up 14 places against the previous survey in 2017, the Ministry of Finance reported on May 18.

According to VNA, the OBS is the world’s only independent and comparative assessment of the three pillars of public budget accountability - transparency, oversight, and public participation - and been conducted by IBP biannually since 2006.

Vietnam’s budget transparency scored 38 out of 100, an increase of 23 points compared to 2017. The average score globally was 45.

Vietnam scored 11 out of 100 for public participation and 74 out of 100 for budget oversight, up four points and two points, respectively, from 2017.

Vietnam increased the availability of budget information by publishing the Executive’s Budget Proposal, the Citizens Budget, and the Audit Report online and increasing the information provided in the In-Year Reports./.

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