Vietnam PM takes responsibility for motorcade entering Hoi An walking street

A tourist takes a selfie with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (L) as he visited Hoi An Old Town in Quang Nam Province, located in central Vietnam, on August 8, 2016. Vietnam Government Portal

Résumé en français

Le Premier ministre vietnamien Nguyen Xuan Phuc a présenté ses excuses au peuple lorsque son cortège de voitures roulant dans la rue piétonne de la vieille ville de Hoi An, située dans la province de Quang Nam.

Des photos montrant le cortège du gouvernement en voitures roulant sur une rue piétonne à Hoi An, où les motos et les voitures sont interdites pour préserver son écosystème célèbre.

Hoi An est reconnu comme un site du patrimoine mondial par l'UNESCO. Ces photos ont enflammé des réactions du public.

Mercredi (10 Août 2016), le PM Phuc a affirmé qu'il n'a pas été dans une voiture entre le cortège.
«Je marchais à pieds un kilomètre avant des voitures, et je ne savais pas qu'ils me suivaient dans cette rue," dit le Premier ministre lors d'une réunion de Hanoi

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Vietnam’s Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc on Wednesday accepted the blame for his motorcade’s entry into a banned street in the Hoi An old town, located in the central province of Quang Nam, last week.

Photos showing the government motorcade traveling on a walking street in Hoi An, where motorbikes and cars are banned to preserve its famed ecosystem, have been shared on social media this month, alleging that the premier was inside one of the vehicles.

Hoi An is a UNESCO-recognized World Heritage Site.

Even though unverified, those photos have ignited negative public reactions.

On Wednesday, PM Phuc asserted that he was not in any car among the motorcade.

“I was walking about a kilometer ahead of the cars, and did not know that they were following me to that street,” the premier said at a Hanoi meeting to recap the government’s administrative reform effort in the 2011-15 period.

Despite this, the premier said he takes responsibility, apologizing for any negative impact the hassle has left on the public.

“This is a mistake and I’m to blame for not adequately overseeing the motorcade,” he said.

“I apologize to the people and hope for your sympathy.”

On August 8, the premier led a government delegation to Quang Nam to attend a national conference on tourism, which kicked off the following day.

Later that day, PM Phuc decided to have a walk around Hoi An, a favorable destination for visitors in central Vietnam, to meet with tourists and local residents.

He was willing to take photos with some locals, and even joked, “Look, [I am] promoting Hoi An tourism now.”

At Wednesday’s meeting, Phuc, who was sworn in as the Vietnamese prime minister for the 2016-21 term in July, reiterated his motto of creating “a government that serves the people, not a government that enjoys itself.”

Source: tuoitrenews