Vinh Phuc province's former Party chief expelled from Communist Party

Vinh Phuc province's former Party chief Hoang Thi Thuy Lan has been removed from Vietnam's Communist Party for accepting bribes.

At an extraordinary meeting on Wednesday afternoon, the Party Central Committee assessed that Lan had shown deterioration in her political ideology, ethics and lifestyle. She seriously violated Party regulations and State laws while performing her duties and breached the Party members' code of conduct and responsibility to set a good example.

"Lan accepted bribes, causing very serious consequences which frustrated the public and negatively affected the reputation of Party organizations and the local government," the committee stated.

Lan, also a Party Central Committee member, was arrested on March 8 on charges of accepting bribes in a scandal linked to real estate firm Phuc Son Group. Chairman of Vinh Phuc province Le Duy Thanh was detained on the same day.

Lan had held the top position in Vinh Phuc since February 2015. She was also chairwoman of the People's Council of the province, an industrial hub in northern Vietnam with multinationals like Toyota, Honda, Piaggio, De Heus, Sojitz, and Haesung.

The arrests of Lan and Thanh are part of an ongoing investigation into “violations of accounting regulations causing serious consequences” at Vinh Phuc-headquartered Phuc Son Group JSC, Thang Long Real Estate and Trading Investment JSC, and related units.

The Ministry of Public Security's investigative agency on February 26 initiated criminal proceedings against Nguyen Van Hau (43), chairman of Phuc Son Group JSC, and five accomplices.

Related to this investigation, a number of former and sitting officials of Quang Ngai and Vinh Long provinces have been arrested. Among them are Cao Khoa, former chairman of Quang Ngai; Dang Van Minh, chairman of Quang Ngai and former director of this province’s Department of Transport; and other former officials of the department.

In early 2021, Lan got into trouble when her daughter Tran Huyen Trang, 31, was appointed deputy director of Vinh Phuc province's Department of Planning and Investment. After authorities discovered violations, Trang's appointment was revoked.