A public-service car with plate 80B-2089 that served General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong for 18 years was brought to the National Funeral Hall at No. 5 Tran Thanh Tong Street in Hanoi, where his state funeral took place on Thursday.

The special Toyota Crown car lies in a corner of the national funeral hall.

The vehicle was provided for the office of Vietnam’s lawmaking National Assembly (NA) in 1998, and started to serve the Party chief in 2006 when he was appointed as the chairman of the NA. The car was used for eight years beforehand.

He was elected as the Party leader in 2011 when the car had been operating for 13 years.

As of the passing of Party General Secretary Trong, the vehicle had been in use for 26 years, accompanying the Party chief for 18 years. 

The car reflected the Party leader’s simple, economical, humble lifestyle, and his devotion to the nation and people.

Nguyen Duc Ha, former head of the Party Grassroot Department under the Organization Commission of the Central Party Committee, previously said that the office of the Central Party Committee had proposed changing the car for another as it was already old.

However, the Party chief disagreed with the offer, explaining that it still ran well, and was only used to travel around Hanoi.

Changing the car would cost money, said the Party leader.

Vietnam’s Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong moves to his car after attending an event. Photo: Tien Tuan / Tuoi Tre

Tran Dinh Dan, former chief of the office of the NA, told Tuoi Tre (Youth) newspaper that the car had been used by former Chairman of the NA Nong Duc Manh.

Dan recounted that he and other officials hinted at buying a new car, but Party chief Trong, who served as NA chairman at that time, refused the proposal and deemed it good enough.

He utilized the car until his death. He passed away at 1:38 pm on July 19, 2024 at the age of 80 at 108 Military Central Hospital in Hanoi despite the efforts of leading doctors and healthcare experts to treat his age-related serious illnesses.

A car used to carry Vietnam’s Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. Photo: Tuan Huy / Tuoi Tre

A two-day state funeral for General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee Nguyen Phu Trong began on Thursday, with the respect-paying ceremony starting from 7:00 am at the National Funeral Hall at No. 5 Tran Thanh Tong Street in Hanoi, the Reunification Palace in Ho Chi Minh City, and his hometown – Dong Hoi Commune, Dong Anh District, Hanoi.

A burial service for the Party chief takes place from 3:00 pm Friday at Mai Dich Cemetery in Hanoi.

Around 1:30 pm on Thursday, throngs of people flocked to the cultural house in Lai Da Hamlet in Dong Hoi Commune, one of the three locations to host the state funeral, to pay their final respects to the Party leader though it rained.

Tran Dinh Dan served as chief of the National Assembly office during the 2007-11 period. Photo: Danh Khang / Tuoi Tre

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