Deceiving asset declarations can lead to job loss.

"In our country, officials possess a lot of assets, but very few are declared because the assets are registered under the names of their children, who are still minors. We need to propose solutions to close this loophole," said Deputy Inspector General of the Government Tran Duc Luong on the morning of August 17th. - In your assessment, what issues could we address with transparency to combat corruption but haven't yet achieved?

- The anti-corruption policy until 2020 has set forth the goal of minimizing state secrets, technological secrets, and professional secrets. In reality, some agencies, businesses, and economic groups exploit the so-called secrecy to avoid providing information about their operations. However, according to the Law on Anti-Corruption, agencies and units must be transparent about their organization and operations. For example, the Government Inspectorate must publicly disclose the results of inspections, complaints, and the resolution of denunciations, as well as other activities such as institutional development...

Therefore, the system of regulations on state secrets needs to be revised. Anything that truly harms national security (if the information is leaked), affects public morality, or has a negative impact on society should not be made public. World experience shows that the more open and transparent the information is, the less corruption there will be.

Deputy Inspector General of the Government Tran Duc Luong: "Those in positions of power and authority should ideally be honest in declaring their assets." Photo: Tien Dung.

- How do you assess Decree 68, which amends and supplements some articles of Decree 37 on transparency of assets and income, including the addition of regulations on public disclosure of asset and income declarations?

- Decree 68 represents a step forward compared to Decree 37 by stipulating the public disclosure of asset declarations. However, it must be emphasized that this public disclosure is based on principles, because the Law on Prevention and Combat of Corruption states that asset declarations are kept with the personnel files. Meanwhile, personnel files are considered state secrets. This point needs to be amended to ensure consistency.

The government has also institutionalized regulations requiring those obligated to declare their assets to publicly disclose this information within their workplace. The form of disclosure is decided by the head of the unit: announcement at a meeting or posting at the agency's headquarters. For example, if I work at the Government Inspectorate and there were changes in my assets in 2011, I would have to submit a supplementary declaration and publicly disclose it.

- Once officials have publicly disclosed their asset declarations at their workplaces, do the press and the public have access to this information?

- This declaration hasn't been made public yet, but we're gradually moving towards that. As the saying goes, "One person keeps it secret, but nine people reveal it." Once it's made public within the unit—like in my agency where about 200 people from senior specialists upwards know about my assets—it means the whole society knows because no one can stop a specialist from saying that someone else owns a house or a car... That will naturally spread, and this is the point the Government Inspectorate is proposing to amend the Law on Prevention and Combat of Corruption. If the National Assembly agrees, then everyone will be able to access the asset declaration.

- In your opinion, what is the current level of accuracy of asset declarations?

- Decree 37 did not define the principles for asset declaration, so Decree 68 established the principle: self-declaration and self-responsibility. Counting 50 million dong in cash is easy, but claiming a painting is worth 50 million or 30 million dong would likely lead to debate. So, who is responsible for determining the value of an item at 50 million dong or more? It's the owner. The responsibility of the person making the declaration is to explain it to the management agency. This means the declaration must be presented in a way that allows for a clear explanation when the management agency or officials review it later.

- Does the decree on asset declaration take into account the possibility of officials splitting their assets into smaller amounts and registering them under the names of other family members or depositing them abroad to avoid declaration requirements?

- During our research, we took this situation into account. For example, in our country, officials possess a lot of assets, but their declarations contain very little because the assets are registered in the name of their children, who are still minors. In our thinking, we need to propose a solution to close this loophole.

Regarding assets abroad, any assets must be declared, not limited to 50 million VND. As a member of the United Nations Convention, we are not concerned about not being able to obtain information from overseas. I believe that those who are obligated to declare their assets, if they have money, property, or belongings abroad, should wisely do so because it is very easy to detect.

- Sir, how many cases of officials making false declarations have been discovered recently?

- I remember there were cases of violations, but not many. Previously, some people were very reluctant to declare their assets and were very afraid of public disclosure, but the authorities lacked the means to penalize them. I once visited a province where the leader said that in the district, there was a person who absolutely refused to submit an asset declaration, but when asked which regulations should be applied to penalize him, they couldn't find any. This time, Decree 68 includes penalties, with the highest form of disciplinary action being dismissal from office.

Public disclosure of asset declarations is a method of controlling honesty. For those in positions of power, the best solution is to be honest in declaring their assets.

(According to VnExpress)