Half of all the cows given by an administration in north-central Vietnam to a lower-level body to boost local breeding activities have been butchered by its officials and their relatives, who received most of the animals.

On Sunday, the People’s Committee in Trieu Do Commune, Trieu Phong District, Quang Tri Province, confirmed that five out of ten to-be-bred male cows assigned by the provincial government had been slaughtered.

The committee had divided the cows amongst villagers, and its officials and their relatives, with the former receiving two, and the latter eight, in late 2017.

Included in the second group are a civil servant of the commune, an elder brother of the committee’s vice-chairman, an elder brother of the commune’s chief police officer, and a brother-in-law of the secretary from the Party Committee at the place.

The cows were part of Quang Tri Province’s efforts to develop its home-based husbandry.

Only those who are cattle-breeding people and promise to directly take care of the cows for at least 48 months are eligible for keeping them.

Nguyen Xuan Truong, chairman of the Trieu Do People’s Committee, explained that the vice-chairman distributed the cows in such a fashion since they arrived in the commune at the end of 2017, allowing the officials no time for preparation.

The above relatives were deemed eligible for breeding the cows, he added.

But heads of some of the local villages said that they had not been notified of keeping the cows.

The reason for the slaughter is being probed, the chairman said.

The total cost for each cow is VND18 million (US$789), of which VND14 million ($614) was allocated by the government and the rest contributed by local citizens.

Like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter to get the latest news about Vietnam!