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The odd suggestions in 2011 delay Tet
VietNamNet recalls the suggestions which were considered as the oddest ones in 2011. They were also the most objectionable proposals.
1. The fee for the right to buy cars, motorbikes
The Vietnam Association of Financial Investors (VAFI), which seems to be too upset over the traffic jam, did a thing which seemed to be not within its function by sending a dispatch to relevant ministries, suggesting the ministries to issue the so called “fee for the right to buy cars and motorbikes.”
According to VAFI, the current tax policies still cannot restrict the increasingly high imports of cars and motorbikes, because the luxurious products are not expensive enough for high income earners. Therefore, VAFI thought that it would be better to use a new tool to prevent luxurious imports to Vietnam.
The “fee for the right to buy cars and motorbikes” should be very high in comparison with the market values of cars and motorbikes. By imposing the fee, the state would have an additional sum of money to develop transport infrastructure, while it would force high income earners to think carefully before buying the luxurious products.
Under the VAFI’s plan, the state should not collect this kind of fee from popular motorbikes in rural areas and small cities, while it should collect small fees in big cities in order to gradually encourage people to use public means of transport.
Meanwhile, as for expensive cars and motorbikes, which have the values higher by 3-5 times than popular products, the fees should be 2-4 times higher than the vehicles’ values.
VAFI believes that this would be a smart solution to settle the traffic jam, but the odd suggestion immediately got strong opposition from people who believed this was unrealizable.
2. Allowing to use apartments as offices
Two years ago, the Ministry of Construction released a decision, prohibiting using apartments as offices. The ministry said that it was necessary to reconsider the use and management of apartments, or this would lead to the rapid degrading of apartment blocs and affect the lives of local residents.
However, recently, in drafting a new legal document, the ministry intended to use apartments as offices, again, for the transaction purposes.
Though the ministry has set up a lot of requirements on the apartments to be used as offices, no once can understand why the ministry can make such a volte-face in its decision.
3. Three percent export tariff on steel
The Ministry of Finance in 2011 once proposed the government to impose the export tax of three percent on steel. The reason the ministry cited to explain its proposal is that steel mills can enjoy fat profits thanks to the low electricity prices in Vietnam, and they have to share the profit with the state.
It said that steel mills now buy electricity at the price discount of up to 65 percent, or the electricity price was 535 dong per kwh cheaper than it real value.
However, the steel mills replied that this was an unreasonable proposal, saying that with the current advanced technologies, only making ingot steel consumes the highest level of electricity. As for other steel products, electricity only costs 0.62-0.91 percent of the total production costs. This spells that the profits gained by steel mills are not sourced from the low electricity prices.
4. People can only register cars if they can find parking places
Minister of Transport Dinh La Thang has asked the Ministry of Public Security to amend the current legal documents and stipulate that people can only make car registration after they can prove that they have found the places to park cars.
Thang said that a lot of car owners deliberately park cars on pavements and public places.
However, Thang’s proposal has been described as unfeasible.
Tran Thuy
vietnamnet
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