we may have mentioned this before...
Updated : Tue, March 20, 2012,9:51 AM (GMT+0700)
Thanks to the ‘assistance’ of corrupt officials who sell certificates of quarantine, tons of unvaccinated chickens are being illegally transported into Ho Chi Minh City from neighboring provinces every day despite the current outbreak of avian influenza.
A goods owner has to spend VND300,000 (US$14) to buy a certificate of quarantine for each trip to carry up to a thousand birds into Ho Chi Minh City, or double the sum for an extra certificate of inoculation.
It is estimated that tens of thousands of unvaccinated ducks and chickens have been transported into the city a day. They are all butchered at registered slaughter houses before being supplied to restaurants and factories’ canteens in industrial parks.
‘A field trip’
A big dealer named Ut Hue in Binh Tam Commune of Long An Province’s Tan An District assured her client two weeks ago about the provision of a large amount of chicken.
“Don’t worry. I can provide you as many as you need even though there is an outbreak of avian influenza in many provinces,” she said. “It’s free to transport inside Long An, but you have to buy yourself certificates of quarantine to carry fowls to other locality.”
Hue admitted that she sometimes slaughtered a small amount of inoculated chickens and sent them to a local veterinary agency to get certificates. Then the seal of the packaging is broken to add in illegal fowls. When transporting a large amount of chickens, she said she paid 300,000 dong to simply buy a certificate to legalize her trip into HCMC.
At the gathering point on Phan Huy Ich Street in HCMC’s Go Vap District, the chicken is divided into small amounts and transferred to motorbikes for delivery to restaurants.
“I buy the goods at the very root and sell it directly to users, so how can I have a certificate of quarantine? During the transport, the only way is to avoid police,” said Hue.
Another dealer, Ms. An in Tan Dong Hiep Commune of Binh Duong Province’s Di An District, told Tuoi Tre, “I buy chickens that haven’t been quarantined from remote villages in Tri An District in Dong Nai and distribute them directly to industrial parks’ canteens in Binh Duong.”
Illegal chickens are all transported after midnight to dodge police, she said.
‘Aid’ by veterinary officials?
A dealer named Thao in Mo Cay Bac District of Ben Tre Province admitted that she paid VND300,000 to buy a certificate of quarantine for each shipment of illegal chicken and ducks into Ho Chi Minh City.
“I accept the responsibility of supplying the goods to you, you don’t need to care for anything. I can have quarantine certificates granted by district- or province-level authorities,” Thao told a Tuoi Tre journalist playing the role of a restaurant owner in HCMC.
After talking on a mobile phone for a while, Thao said a man from the provincial veterinary office in Ben Tre agreed to grant her a quarantine certificate when she transports her goods to Ham Luong Bridge.
“If you want, I will give you a seal so that you can seal the goods off after adding more along the way to HCMC,” Thao added.
On the morning of March 16, Tuoi Tre’s disguised journalists had a date with the man Thao mentioned.
He introduced himself as Buu and said he worked for the Ben Tre Veterinary Department. He said, “Regulations rule that fowls must be inoculated before being granted a quarantine certificate.
“If you have no certificate of inoculation, I can offer help. It’s 600,000 dong for both certificates of inoculation and quarantine for a shipment of 1,000 chickens.”
Buu added that any dealer needing to transport illegal fowls can call him or send him an SMS message including details such as the number plate of the truck, the driver’s name, and the address of slaughter house and they will be given a certificate at Ham Luong Bridge. http://www.tuoitrenews.vn/cmlink/tuoitrenews/features/tons-of-illegal-chickens-carried-into-city-amid-bird-flu-1.65496
A goods owner has to spend VND300,000 (US$14) to buy a certificate of quarantine for each trip to carry up to a thousand birds into Ho Chi Minh City, or double the sum for an extra certificate of inoculation.
It is estimated that tens of thousands of unvaccinated ducks and chickens have been transported into the city a day. They are all butchered at registered slaughter houses before being supplied to restaurants and factories’ canteens in industrial parks.
‘A field trip’
A big dealer named Ut Hue in Binh Tam Commune of Long An Province’s Tan An District assured her client two weeks ago about the provision of a large amount of chicken.
“Don’t worry. I can provide you as many as you need even though there is an outbreak of avian influenza in many provinces,” she said. “It’s free to transport inside Long An, but you have to buy yourself certificates of quarantine to carry fowls to other locality.”
Hue admitted that she sometimes slaughtered a small amount of inoculated chickens and sent them to a local veterinary agency to get certificates. Then the seal of the packaging is broken to add in illegal fowls. When transporting a large amount of chickens, she said she paid 300,000 dong to simply buy a certificate to legalize her trip into HCMC.
At the gathering point on Phan Huy Ich Street in HCMC’s Go Vap District, the chicken is divided into small amounts and transferred to motorbikes for delivery to restaurants.
“I buy the goods at the very root and sell it directly to users, so how can I have a certificate of quarantine? During the transport, the only way is to avoid police,” said Hue.
Another dealer, Ms. An in Tan Dong Hiep Commune of Binh Duong Province’s Di An District, told Tuoi Tre, “I buy chickens that haven’t been quarantined from remote villages in Tri An District in Dong Nai and distribute them directly to industrial parks’ canteens in Binh Duong.”
Illegal chickens are all transported after midnight to dodge police, she said.
‘Aid’ by veterinary officials?
A dealer named Thao in Mo Cay Bac District of Ben Tre Province admitted that she paid VND300,000 to buy a certificate of quarantine for each shipment of illegal chicken and ducks into Ho Chi Minh City.
“I accept the responsibility of supplying the goods to you, you don’t need to care for anything. I can have quarantine certificates granted by district- or province-level authorities,” Thao told a Tuoi Tre journalist playing the role of a restaurant owner in HCMC.
After talking on a mobile phone for a while, Thao said a man from the provincial veterinary office in Ben Tre agreed to grant her a quarantine certificate when she transports her goods to Ham Luong Bridge.
Ms. An and her husband slaughter unvaccinated chickens in Binh Duong Province for selling to restaurants (Photo: Tuoi Tre)
“Wherever you collect the goods from, just carry it here and I will give you a valid certificate to transport into HCMC. On the certificate, it is noted that the goods come from Ben Tre Town.“If you want, I will give you a seal so that you can seal the goods off after adding more along the way to HCMC,” Thao added.
On the morning of March 16, Tuoi Tre’s disguised journalists had a date with the man Thao mentioned.
He introduced himself as Buu and said he worked for the Ben Tre Veterinary Department. He said, “Regulations rule that fowls must be inoculated before being granted a quarantine certificate.
“If you have no certificate of inoculation, I can offer help. It’s 600,000 dong for both certificates of inoculation and quarantine for a shipment of 1,000 chickens.”
Buu added that any dealer needing to transport illegal fowls can call him or send him an SMS message including details such as the number plate of the truck, the driver’s name, and the address of slaughter house and they will be given a certificate at Ham Luong Bridge. http://www.tuoitrenews.vn/cmlink/tuoitrenews/features/tons-of-illegal-chickens-carried-into-city-amid-bird-flu-1.65496
| Tran Quang Thai, acting chief of the Ben Tre Veterinary Department, told Tuoi Tre that any officials receiving bribes to grant quarantine certificates will be strictly punished, although he has never heard of his staff committing any wrongdoings. It is ruled that the origin of fowls must be clearly stated on the quarantine certificate. For example, it is wrong if the goods come from districts such as Mo Cay Bac and Mo Cay Nam but Ben Tre is stated on the certificate, he said. Regarding the man named Buu, Thai said he will investigate, but admitted that one of his staff members is named Le Quang Buu, who is a veterinary medicine teacher. |
