A state official from Can Tho Province on a business trip decided not to return home without resigning or giving an official explanation, except he wanted to go to school in America.
It is unclear whether Tran Ngoc Phi Long, vice head of the International Cooperation Division, under the Department of Foreign Affairs is attempting to defect. He was assigned to attend an exchange session in Canada in early July. Instead of returning as expected, he fled to the US and submitted an application for resignation.
Pham The Vinh, head of the International Cooperation Division, said the division intends to treat this case as if Long intended to abscond his position.
However, according to regulation, they must send three invitations to Long to return to his office and discuss the matter before dismissing him. Vinh said that they have been unable to contact Long since the incident.
Long's mother
Long's mother commented, "We knew nothing about his plan until we received notification from his workplace. After that, Long called us and said, worried that because our family is so poor, it would be impossible for him to prove financial capability when applying for a study visa. So he decided to stay, and that's the last we heard from him."
According to Long's mother, he is taking a course and hopes to join a PhD programme. She said, "I told him to come home, but he said he was scared of being punished and unemployed." She went on to say that Long rarely stayed home. In order to earn extra money to augment his low salary, he took on extra jobs as an english teacher.
Between 2007 and 2009, the municipal authorities spent VND300 million for Long to attain a master's degree in the UK. After his return, Long was assigned to work at the International Cooperation Division.