Vietnam has nominated the enforcer of the Communist Party’s anti-corruption drive as the next president and proposed a new head of the National Assembly, in appointments that could ease months of political turmoil and allow policymakers to refocus on a struggling economy.
Unprecedentedly for a one-party nation once known for its stable politics, two state presidents and a National Assembly speaker have stepped down in less than 18 months, all for unspecified “wrongdoing” amid a major anti-graft campaign which is unnerving foreign investors because of its chilling effect on bureaucracy.
After approval from the National Assembly, which could come this week, Vietnamese Minister of Public Security To Lam would replace Vo Van Thuong, who stepped down in March after being accused of contravening party rules, just over a year after his appointment.
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Lam would retain his police minister job even after taking office as state president, National Assembly General Secretary Bui Van Cuong told a news conference yesterday.
“The Politburo hasn’t nominated a new Minister of Public Security, and therefore the National Assembly will not vote to dismiss this post during its upcoming session,” Cuong said.
Widely considered one of the most powerful figures in the country, Lam was chosen by the party’s Central Committee earlier last week, but authorities and state media only revealed the nomination on Saturday.
The Central Committee also sought to elevate National Assembly Vice Chairman Tran Thanh Man to the legislature chairman’s post.
The nominations come amid a years-long anti-graft campaign pushed by Vietnamese Communist Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong that has ensnared scores of other government officials and business executives. A death sentence was last month handed to a real-estate tycoon in a US$12 billion fraud case.
The National Assembly would begin the process of voting on the nominations today, after the start of its summer session, Cuong said.
Lam, 66, would be the third president of the Southeast Asian nation in less than two years. His two immediate predecessors resigned after accepting responsibility for “violations” possibly detected by the ministry that Lam oversaw.
Lam has emerged as one of the most important officials apart from Trong, after his work to weed out corruption helped lift Vietnam’s ranking in Transparency International’s corruption perceptions index to 83 last year from 113 in 2016.
While the presidency in Vietnam is largely ceremonial, it is also the second-most important position in the political hierarchy and a possible stepping stone to eventually succeed Trong when his term ends in early 2026.
The presidential role carries little power and could also indicate that Lam is losing influence in the government, said Carl Thayer, emeritus professor at the University of New South Wales in Australia.
“He won’t have his hands on the levers of power,” Thayer said.
The scope and intensity of Lam’s public ministry investigations at the behest of Trong have unnerved many officials, he said.
As the public security minister since 2016, Lam’s law enforcement responsibilities have included leading the sweeping anti-graft effort that led to at least 459 party members being disciplined over corruption last year alone.
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