Socialist Republic of Vietnam

The Party should lead in the fight against corruption and waste, mobilising the entire political system and making the public a firm foundation.

General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) Nong Duc Manh made the statement in his closing speech on July 29 at the plenum of the CPV Central Committee, the third since the 10th Party Congress in April.

The Party leader said: "Since gaining power, the Party and State have always paid attention to the fight against corruption and waste. In recent years, especially after the sixth Party CC plenum resolution of the eighth Congress and a conclusion passed by the fourth Party CC plenum of the ninth Congress, initial progress has been made in the fight against corruption and waste. Many major corruption cases, which had caused heavy losses and had been running for a long time, have been detected and the offenders punished. Corruption and waste have gradually been put under control. However, instances of corruption and waste are still occurring on a large and serious scale, causing a terribly complicated problem which aroused public concerns and threatened the existence of our government."

"The combating of corruption and waste has therefore emerged as not only an immediate but also long-term task, that should focus on preventive measures. In this pressing situation, detection of offences and appropriate punishments are key to preventing similar problems in the future," the Party leader pointed out.

He called for concerted efforts to speed up the fight.

"In fulfilling the 10th Party Congress resolution, the Party Central Committee has issued a number of solutions, ideologically, politically, economically and legally. These concrete solutions first of all call for education in ethics and lifestyle, a completion of policies and regulations on the management of the economy, finance, public property, State budget, and funds contributed by people and foreign aid, transparent economic and financial operations, and reforms in State administration, procuracy, investigation, inventory and supervision."

The Party leader also called for greater public involvement through supervision by the Fatherland Front, other social and political organisations, mass media agencies and the general public.

Reform of the salary payment system was also necessary to aid the fight, General Secretary Manh emphasised.

He pointed out a need to create favourable conditions for people to report instances of corruption and to have sound policies to protect and reward those people who rightly report cases of corruption or to take firm measures against any retaliations or to abuse of anti-corruption rules to harm others or sabotage internal unity.

"Efforts should be made to increase the role and responsibilities of the mass media in the fight against corruption and waste while at the same time ensuring honesty and accuracy in mass media reporting that complies with the law, as well as resolutely eliminates one-way information, groundless accusations, or the revelations of investigative agencies' confidential information," Party leader Manh said.

The Party leader expressed belief in the final success of the fight, saying:

"Although it is difficult and complicated to combat corruption and waste, we will certainly win this fight, given the firm resolve of the Party and the Party Central Committee and strong support from the people. The fight will continue under the guidelines of the Law on Corruption Control and the Law on Practicing Thrift and Combating Waste. The final success will certainly come because we have managed to set up a steering board against corruption, continuously strengthened professional agencies with extensive experiences in dealing with large-scale corruption and waste cases. We strongly believe that the final success will contribute to maintaining socio-political stability and fulfilling targets of the socio-economic strategy for the first decade of the 21st century. We should stand firm against corruption and waste and resolutely maintain political stability in the interest of development. Political stability and development can be achieved only with effective control over corruption and waste.

"The Party must show its leadership role well in the fight and at the same time mobilize the participation of the entire political system and firmly base itself on the public. This combination will surely be a decisive factor in the final success," the Party General Secretary concluded.

Source: VNA