Authorities in Hanoi have ordered an investigation after a local newspaper reported that qualified kindergarten teacher candidates had to pay “brokers” thousands of dollars for a job.
Pham Quang Nghi, the Party secretary of Hanoi, has instructed related agencies to verify the claims.
“The issue is receiving a lot of public attention. We need to give the public an answer,” Nghi said at a meeting on Wednesday, as cited by news website VietNamNet.
The order came after Phu Nu Online published two reports this week, naming a retired teacher and an officer who is teaching at a military school as two “brokers” who charged each applicant VND150-250 million (US$6,675-11,120).
They promised to help clients secure a position at public kindergartens in Soc Son District, which is in need of hundreds of teachers this year.
The retired teacher told the undercover reporter that she has been in the brokering service for ten years.
“There’s no fairness in the recruitment process. If you want a job in a public school, you must have a lot of money,” she said. “Without a bribe, don’t even dream about it."
“I need to have money to send my own children to school and help them get a job too."
Meanwhile the military officer said he’s only receiving money from candidates with good academic results.
He said that most teaching positions have been filled and only the best candidates can get in, with money.
Hanoi has finished receiving job applications for its public education system and will organize recruitment exams later this year. It plans to hire more than 4,414 people including 2,369 kindergarten teachers.
Phu Nu Online reports are the first detailing the brokering service.
But Nghi said there were always rumors about it among the public. “So it’s impossible that the service does not exist.”
He has ordered Hanoi police to finish the investigation by October 15.