by Vu Kim Chung
30-3-2001
Although the number of incidents of detected corruption involving members of Vietnam's Communist Party fell in recent years, cases have become more serious, official media said on March 30, 2001. The Saigon Giai Phong (Saigon Liberation) said on average 0.86 percent of party members had been disciplined each year between 1995 and 2001, down from more than 1.0 percent in the previous five-year period. But the newspaper said cases were more serious and newly and better organised corruption among officials had made it more difficult for the party to fight graft.
"The violations committed by Party cadres have not declined as the characteristic has been more serious," the party newspaper said.
"The fact that a smaller number of party members have been disciplined...does not reflect the reality," it said.
A recent survey by the Hong Kong-based Political and Economic Risk Consultancy found Vietnam the most corrupt country in Asia, scoring 9.75 on a scale of ten.
The party launched a campaign in May 1999 aimed at rooting out graft and mismanagement, but leaders have admitted it has fallen short of expectations.
"Recent big cases have exposed the organised corruption with involvement of various levels, branches, localities, units and people who have 'connections' and 'umbrellas' to protect and shield themselves," the newspaper said.
The Saigon Giai Phong said in some cases, while the party had announced disciplinary steps, prompt and sufficient punishment by the government had failed to follow. The report came after the Party Central Committee announced the week before it had disciplined five senior officials for mismanagement. Defence Minister Pham Van Tra and army chief of staff Le Van Dung were reprimanded while two ministerial-rank officials and a senior executive were given official warnings. Hoang Duc Nghi, ministerial-rank head of the committee for ethnic minorities and mountainous areas, and Doan Van Kien, director-general of Vietnam National Coal Corp, were disciplined for failing to stop corruption and misuse of funds, state media reported during the last week in March.
Earlier in March, official media said the Party Politburo had sacked three other senior officials, including two province chiefs, for "mistakes and wrongdoings."