Vietnamese President To Lam was yesterday formally named the country’s top leader, pledging to “speed up” a sweeping anti-graft campaign that has snared thousands.
The Communist Party elected Lam general secretary at a morning session, the party told a news conference, making him the most powerful figure in Vietnam’s leadership structure.
Lam’s appointment comes two weeks after the death of Communist Party general secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Vietnam’s most powerful leader in decades, who presided over the so-called “blazing furnace” crackdown on corruption.
Photo: AFP
In his first remarks as general secretary, Lam pledged to “speed up” the campaign that has seen numerous top officials and senior business leaders face charges.
Lam told the news conference he would “continue to speed up anti-corruption ... regardless of who the person is.”
“We have gained the trust of the people, and international friends, in our fight,” he said.
The party’s general secretary is the most powerful figure in Vietnam’s leadership structure, with the president occupying a largely ceremonial role that includes meeting foreign counterparts.
Lam became president in May after his predecessor resigned amid the vast anti-graft purge.
It was not immediately clear if Lam would simultaneously continue to serve as president.
Chinese President Xi Jinping (習近平) sent a congratulatory message to To Lam, state broadcaster China Central Television reported.
“To Lam has not been fearful of taking down some highly important people,” said Carl Thayer, emeritus professor at the University of New South Wales.
“He is going to do it again,” Thayer said.
The Vietnamese Communist Party later yesterday said that it had accepted the resignations of four members for “violations of party rules ... and regulations on preventing and fighting corruption and negative phenomena.”
The four include a deputy prime minister, the minister of natural resources and environment, and two provincial party chiefs, the party said on its Web site.
Trong died two weeks ago in Hanoi “due to old age and serious illness,” and Lam was informally handed the reins of power.
His formal move into the top job follows a long career with the secretive Vietnamese Ministry of Public Security, which deals with the monitoring of dissent and surveillance of activists in the country.
Lam, 67, led the ministry from 2016 until he became president earlier this year.
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