VietNamNet Bridge – Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Mitsuo Sakaba’s term Vietnam has ended. However, he still committed to assist with the PCI corruption case.

VietNamNet Bridge – Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam Mitsuo Sakaba’s term Vietnam has ended. However, he still committed to assist with the PCI corruption case.

Mitsuo Sakaba has worked in Vietnam for 2 years and seven months. During his term, Japan’s official development assistance (ODA) rose to a record $1.7 billion in 2009. Japanese investment in Vietnam also increased, reaching $1.5 billion so far this year.

At a farewell meeting in Hanoi on September 14, the Ambassador talked about two sad memories during his term. In September 2007, before he went to Vietnam, the two countries were stirred up by the collapse of Can Tho bridge. In August 2008, the PCI scandal was exposed.

Vietnam is going to judge the PCI bribery case in the next two weeks and Mitsuo Sakaba is very interested in this case. He maintained that, although he is not the Japanese Ambassador to Vietnam anymore, he would keep a close eye on the scandal.

In August 2008, Japanese newspapers reported that Japan-based Pacific Consultants International (PCI) gave several hundred thousand dollars to a Vietnamese official to win contracts in Vietnam. Three months later, PCI officials were judged in Japan. In December 2008, Japan was temporarily granted ODA to Vietnam, which resumed in March 2009. In Vietnam, the PCI case was prosecuted in December 2008. Most recently, Huynh Ngoc Si, the defendant in this scandal, was moved to HCM City for judgment in September 2010.

“ODA is Japanese people’s tax payment. Corruption, therefore, is not allowed in ODA-related activities,” Ambassador Mitsuo Sakaba emphasized.

He said the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) will make surveys of two express railway routes Hanoi-Vinh and HCM City-Nha Trang.

At the meeting, the Ambassador also shared his memories about Vietnam. In the past three years, he has traveled through all 63 provinces and cities in Vietnam.

“I will never forget the radiant faces of ethnic minority people who I met during my trips to Kon Tum or Son La provinces,” he remarked. The Ambassador was impressed by Vietnam’s natural landscapes and hospitable people.

Before leaving Vietnam later this week, the Japanese Ambassador recommended Vietnamese people to change some of their habits, including giving bribes, even in daily life, to pay attention to hygiene and to obey the rules, especially traffic rules.

“I’m leaving Hanoi in three days and I’ll return here the next ten years. I’ll expect to see Vietnam’s strong development at that time,” he commented.

PV