Corruption fight stepped up

The government-led Central Committee for Preventing and Combating Corruption on August 22, 2012 agreed on a plan to establish an inter-sector task force exclusively in charge of supervising investigations of serious corruption cases and some localities home to serious corruption cases would witness the force’s investigations.

This move reflected the government’s bigger push to fight corruption, said Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung.

This move also came amid the committee’s 18th meeting last week, in which Dung underlined the need for authorised bodies to soon improve the quality of legal regulations sensitive to corruption, like land management and usage, state-run administration and state bodies’ accountability.

The bodies were also required to deepen their inspection, auditing, investigation and prosecution of corruption cases.

“We look forward to learning more about the plan to establish an inter-sector inspection task force to monitor and review the inspection, investigation and prosecution of serious corruption cases,” the British Embassy to Vietnam’s Charge D’Affaires of Kate Harrisson told VIR.

“Efficient inter-agency cooperation is absolutely crucial in the fight against corruption. We stand ready to work with the different agencies to enhance their combined efforts to identify corrupt practices and bring the perpetrators to justice,” she said.

The committee’s Office chief Nguyen Dinh Phach reported the committee’s anti-corruption activities in the year’s first seven months reaped “positive results”. The inspection sector launched 6,065 inspections in this year’s first half, reclaiming nearly VND6.5 trillion ($312.5 million) to the state coffers and nearly 1,300 hectares of land.

However, the Government Inspectorate head Huynh Phong Tranh said: “Corruption remains an increasingly serious issue that can be seen in many sectors and levels, causing discontent among the public. Corruption is also a big challenge for the Party’s leadership and the state’s management.”

Harrison said corruption threatened growth and stability, hurt the poor and the vulnerable and was harmful to economic development. So it was in everyone’s best interest for the environment of integrity and transparency in business relationships to improve.

“As lead development partner on anti-corruption we are working with the government and the donor community to explore ways to promote the role of private sector further, including foreign companies who are operating in Vietnam. We are also encouraging the government to introduce stricter corporate governance standards and to increase transparency and implement further reforms of state owned enterprises to improve competitiveness in this sector.”  

The Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong in June, 2012 issued Conclusion No21-KL/TW of the 5th plenary session of the 11th Central Communist Party of Vietnam taking place on May, 2012 on strengthening the Party’s leadership on anti-corruption and wastefulness.

Under the conclusion, the existing Law on Anti-Corruption and other relevant documents would be amended and a regulation on controlling incomes of those officials would be made, so that officials’ assets and incomes at their working places and residential areas must be publicized.

“The types of officials and officers needing to declare their assets and income will be gradually swollen. Also the scope of publicising the asset and income declaration results of cadres, Party members and officers will be expanded,” said the conclusion.