Nghe An Delegate: Expecting an 'iron hand' to recover corrupt assets

(Baonghean.vn) - Speaking at the Hall during the discussion session of the National Assembly on November 21, delegate Hoang Thi Thu Trang - Nghe AnExpect a breakthrough and an "iron hand" in recovering corrupt assets.

Delegate Hoang Thi Thu Trang. Photo: Contributor

Discussing the draft Law on Anti-Corruption (amended) at the 4th Session of the 14th National Assembly, regarding the issue of recovering corrupt assets, delegate Trang said that assets are the target and motive of corruption.

Citing a report by the Government Inspectorate stating that in the past 10 years, only 4,676 billion/59,000 billion, accounting for 8%; 219 hectares of land/400 hectares of land, accounting for 54%, the head of the Nghe An Civil Judgment Enforcement Department was indignant: “But it is worth mentioning that in the past 10 years, there are still 55,000 billion that we have not recovered, if not to say that we cannot recover. Voters have compared this amount of money with the budget expected to be spent to build the North-South Expressway in the 2017-2020 period and it also collects the budget within about 5 years of a poor province. Voters are very sad and indignant at this situation of throwing salt into the sea”.

Delegate Trang expressed her hope for a breakthrough and an "iron hand" in recovering corrupt assets in this draft. However, the draft does not have any breakthrough provisions but only reiterates some provisions of the current Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code, Inspection Law, and Audit Law.

To overcome the weakness in asset recovery, Ms. Trang said that many synchronous solutions are needed, in which perfecting the asset recovery institution is the key issue.

“I think that explaining the origin of assets is the right of the asset owner, while proving violations or crimes is the responsibility of state agencies. Only then will it be consistent with the current legal system, especially consistent with the principle of presumption of innocence recognized by the Constitution, as well as the Criminal Procedure Code which has been clearly stipulated, and it is also consistent with the reality of Vietnamese people, that is, the habit of using cash, the habit of saving and accumulating from generation to generation, or the habit of borrowing and supporting each other in life,” the female delegate analyzed.

Ms. Trang gave an example, most cadres, civil servants, public employees, workers, and even farmers today can still buy land to build big houses. The source of assets can be legal or illegal; legal can be from salary, support from relatives or loans, illegal can be due to corruption or illegal business. In this case, it is very difficult to ask the owner of the assets to prove it, if applying the principle of presumption of guilt as many National Assembly deputies proposed.

The delegate from Nghe An worried: “I am afraid that if we impose and rely on willpower, our fight against corruption will be similar to the previous process of denouncing or prosecuting landlords. Because the responsibility for proof belongs to the state agency, I think there should be a regulation so that the state agency can participate early and deeply in tracing the origin of assets in terms of freezing, seizing and recovering corrupt assets.”

In front of the entire Hall, delegate Hoang Thi Thu Trang suggested that it is necessary to add a separate chapter on recovering corrupt assets, which specifically stipulates the principles, procedures and processes of such contents as recovering the origin of assets, freezing, seizing, and recovering, and on judicial assistance, it is necessary to increase the authority of agencies, inspectors, auditors, prosecution agencies and civil enforcement agencies. At the same time, the delegate proposed to stipulate legal responsibilities if these agencies do not apply the above measures, leading to the loss of assets, in order to deal with the situation of apprehension and avoidance due to fear of wrongful conviction./.

PV-CTV