At a formal ceremony inaugurating the formation of a new multiparty pro-government political group, the People’s Alliance for Social Revolution, South Vietnamese President Nguyen Van Thieu praises the organization as a “major step toward grassroots political activity.” An Alliance manifesto asserted that the group was “determined to wipe out corruption, do away with social inequalities, and rout out the entrenched forces of militarists and reactionaries who have always blocked progress.” Thieu’s government had long been accused of corruption and, in order to garner political support from the People’s Alliance, he vowed to take steps to eradicate the corruption. Unfortunately, neither Thieu nor the People’s Alliance could do much about the entrenched corruption in the South Vietnamese government.
This Day In History: July 4
