Politburo disciplines former Deputy PM, former Government Office Chairman

Former Deputy Prime Minister Trinh Dinh Dung and former Government Office Chairman Mai Tien Dung have been reprimanded by the Politburo, Vietnam Communist Party's premier decision-making body.

At a meeting on Saturday morning, the Party Central Committee's Secretariat warned the Ministry of Industry and Trade's Party Committee and reprimanded the ministerial Party Committee's leadership for the 2021-2026 term. Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Do Thang Hai and former Deputy Minister of Industry and Trade Hoang Quoc Vuong were expelled from the Party.

According to the Politburo and the Secretariat, the trade ministry's Party Committee leadership for the 2016-2021 term seriously violated the principle of democratic centralism, Party regulations, State laws, and working regulations; lacked responsibility, and showed loose leadership and direction.

As a result, many violations and shortcomings have caused serious consequences that are difficult to remedy, and the risk of huge losses of money and assets to the state, investors and consumers as well as a waste of social resources.

A number of criminal cases have occurred at the ministry as many officials violated the law and have been handled as criminals or subject to Party and administrative disciplinary actions. This caused frustration among officials, Party members and people, negatively affecting the reputation of Party organizations and State management agencies.

The trade ministry's Party Committee leadership for the 2021-2026 term was found to have violated the principle of democratic centralism, Party regulations, and State laws; failed to implement instructions and decisions of competent authorities; and lacked responsibility and showed loose leadership and direction, leading to many violations and shortcomings.

The trade ministry's Party Committee leadership also issued and organized the implementation of working regulations that breached the Politburo's regulations; released a resolution that violated working regulations; and failed to seriously implement the instructions of the Politburo and the Prime Minister; allowed criminal cases to occur at the ministry, with many officials and Party members violating the law, including Party Committee leaders and a deputy minister who have been detained.

Party Central Committee member Trinh Dinh Dung, a member of the Government Party Committee leadership and Deputy Prime Minister for the 2016-2021 term; and Party Central Committee member Mai Tien Dung, a member of the Government Party Committee leadership and Minister-Chairman of the Government Office, violated Party regulations, State laws and regulations on Party members' code of conduct and the responsibility to set a good example as leaders, affecting the reputation of Party organizations and State management agencies.

Hoang Quoc Vuong, as chief of the trade ministry's Party Committee and Deputy Minister, and Deputy Minister Do Thang Hai also showed deterioration in political ideology, ethics, and lifestyle. These violations caused public anger and had a very negative impact on the reputation of Party organizations and State management agencies.

According to the Secretariat, Vuong's violations "caused very serious consequences which will be difficult to remedy and risk a huge loss of money and assets to the state as well as a waste of social resources, while Hai's violations "led to very serious consequences".

Trinh Dinh Dung, 68, has a master's degree in economics and a bachelor's degree in construction engineering. He was a member of the 10th, 11th and 12th Party Central Committees; a delegate of the 11th and 12th National Assembly; Chairman and Party Committee Secretary of Vinh Phuc province; Deputy Prime Minister, and then Minister of Construction.

In April 2016, he was appointed by the National Assembly as Deputy Prime Minister and held this position for five years. In this position, he was in charge of industry, agriculture, trade, import-export, construction, transportation, natural resources and environment; foreign direct investment (FDI); Vietnamese investment abroad; energy security and saving; national key projects; economic zones, industrial zones and export processing zones. Dung was in charge of five ministries, including the industry and trade sector.