Criminals escaping abroad can't escape punishment: Party General Secretary

Any one that commits violations will be handled strictly as there are no "forbidden zones, no exceptions, whoever the person is," Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong said Friday.

"Even those who flee broad will be put under investigation, prosecuted. There are no ways for them to escape from the punishment of the laws," Trong told a meeting hosted by the standing board of the Central Steering Committee for Anti-Corruption that he heads.

Speaking at the meeting, the Party chief said that anti-corruption work is experiencing new and deeper developments, closely linking anti-corruption and Party building and rectification.

Particularly, the steering committee has focused on directing and handling 108 serious and complicated corruption cases that have attracted public attention like the case of giving and receiving bribes related to pandemic repariation flights occurring at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; the case of market manipulation at FLC Group; the case of defrauding to appropriate property at Tan Hoang Minh; the medical equipment bidding scam at AIC Company, and the case of frauds in issuances of bonds at Van Thinh Phat Group.

Besides, the committee has also handled many high-ranking cadres, both incumbent and retired, that received compliments from Party members, cadres and ordinary people, Trong noted.

They included four Party Central Commitee members and four former members of the committee who were ministers, former ministers or provincial Party chiefs; four deputy ministers or former deputy ministers or similar-level officials; two former provincial chairmen and five senior officers in the armed forces.

Reviewing the situation and results in the past time, Party General Secretary Trong affirmed that in the fight against corruption and negativity, it must be done drastically and synchronously.

"We must strictly handle violations in line with the concept that there are "no forbidden zones, no exceptions, whoever the person is," he emphasized.

At the same time, he noted, it is necessary to promptly replace those who are disciplined, have limited capacity, and have low reputation according to the motto: "There is in, there is out, there is up, there is down".

"Recently, for the first time, we dismissed three members of the Party Central Committee; three chairmen of provincial people's councils or people's committees.

"I've said many times, those who don't dare to do it, boldly stand aside and let others do it. The more intense the fight against corruption, the stronger the Party gets, solidifying the people's trust in the Party, State and regime, cleaning up the apparatus, tightening disciplines," he noted.

At this meeting, Trong asked all levels of Party committees, Party organizations and functional agencies to continue pushing forward the anti-corruption fight resolutely, persistently, and continuously with higher determination and stronger action.