>> Sacred places, profane behaviour
>> Hanoi bans use of state-owned cars for festivals
Cars owned by state-run agencies and organisations can be seen at pagodas, despite the prime minister’s ban of their unofficial use.
Official car, unofficial business
In the days after Tet, many staff members of state agencies also reportedly went to pray during working hours.
State-owned cars with blue or red numbered license plates from different localities such as Hanoi and Mekong Delta provinces have been seen around Vinh Nghiem Pagoda in Ho Chi Minh City.
Nguyen Quoc Thao, a guard at the pagoda said, he had to keep very close eyes on state cars which are often used by officials and may have expensive things inside. He also recalled that, at this same time last year, a thief broken into the pagoda’s parking lot and took side mirrors of a car owned by a high-ranking official.
There was a similar scene at Ba Chua Kho Temple in northern Bac Ninh Province in the first days of the new year, according to Vnexpress.
Many official cars, from places as far away as Hanoi, Thai Nguyen, Danang, Vinh Phuc and Lao Cai, could be seen there on the afternoon of February 14.
Recently, Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung has banned state agencies from using public cars to attend festivals and go to pagodas, and staff members of state agencies are not allowed to come to such festivals during working hours.
Public cars from Hanoi have the code 31A
Public cars parked around Ba Chua Kho Temple