State seal used in magazine scam targeting tourists
- PM Ch.Saikhanbileg: The airport is not a marketplace -
By B.KHASH-ERDENE
A man from a company called Hunnu Lord was caught handing fake government flyers out to foreigners at the airport, demanding that they buy a magazine for 160 USD to enter the country.
The scam was discovered during Prime Minister Ch.Saikhanbileg’s unannounced inspection at Chinggis Khaan Airport earlier this month. A video of Ch.Saikhanbileg questioning airport officials has been posted online and gaining attention since last Thursday.
In red capital letters, the flyer said, “You, a foreign citizen, must buy Access journal by all means,” implying that foreigners would not be allowed in the country if they did not purchase the magazine.
Visibly upset in the video, the Prime Minister demanded to know why a typo-riddled flyer with an unauthorized government seal was allowed to be handed out past the airport gate, where only airport staff and passengers are allowed.
“[This flyer] has the government seal on it. This means it’s to do with me… A man in a white shirt was handing this flyer out to everyone entering the country, past the airport terminal. Who gave them the right to sell their magazine in a restricted section of the airport? Don’t you do anything when these strangers use the name of the state? Has Special Security become a black marketplace, like Narantuul?” Ch.Saikhanbileg scolded.
The airport officials confirmed that the company had been operating past the airport terminal since June, through a request from the Ministry of Roads and Transportation to provide introductory material for tourists coming into the country.
Ch.Saikhanbileg told the airport officials to stop the distribution of flyers, fire two directors in charge of land at the ministry, and take appropriate measures among the border protection forces and airport officials.
Since Friday, social media users have been outraged by the news.
“They’ve been operating since June and nobody knew until now, at the end of tourism season. Hello! We found the reason why tourism’s been down,” said an outraged social media user. “This is a sabotage of the national tourism industry, and it’s so embarrassing.”
One social media user asked if Hunnu Lord was going to be prosecuted for fraud, “Are they going to prosecute these people? This is pretty clearly fraud. Oh, what’s the point though? They will just get out of jail when the amnesty law passes.”
Chinggis Khaan Airport and the Ministry of Roads and Transportation have not given official statements on the issue.
Short URL: http://ubpost.mongolnews.mn/?p=15994
Posted by The UB Post
on Aug 30 2015. Filed under Онцлох мэдээлэл.
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