When the Central Inspection Commission controls the assets and income of high-ranking officials
The draft amendment to the 2018 Law on Anti-Corruption proposes to strengthen the role of Party Inspection Committees at all levels in controlling assets and income, in order to improve the effectiveness of anti-corruption and recovery of lost assets.
The 2018 Law on Anti-Corruption is being amended and supplemented to promptly institutionalize the Party's guidelines on anti-corruption; ensure consistency with the Party's guidelines and policies and the legal system on innovation, reorganization of the political system, and implementation of the two-level local government model.
In addition, this amendment of the law also aims to overcome the limitations and shortcomings of current laws on corruption prevention and control, meet practical requirements, and contribute to improving the effectiveness of corruption prevention and control work.
The implementation of the 2018 Anti-Corruption Law shows that the most difficult problem is still controlling the assets of people with positions and powers. Practice shows that there are still many loopholes for officials and civil servants to hide huge amounts of assets and the truth is only revealed when they are found to have committed wrongdoings in major cases that are exposed.
A series of officials, when prosecuted, quickly returned billions of dong they had received from businesses through project contracts in hopes of having their sentences reduced under the Party's lenient policy. This is commendable. But it is almost certain that those billions of dong were not fully declared according to regulations or were hidden in various forms.
For example, the case of former Da Nang leaders using their names to register 5 plots of land is currently being brought to trial. That requires us to be more proactive and strengthen our power in controlling assets, not just waiting for "the rats to run out when the house is on fire".
The important highlight in this amendment made by the competent authorities is the recognition of the role of Party inspection agencies in controlling assets and income of people with positions and powers.
The increasing responsibility and authority of the Party's inspection agency
The draft law proposes that the Central Inspection Commission control the assets and income of those under the management of the Politburo and Secretariat.
Central Party committees and agencies and Party committees directly under the Central Committee control the assets and income of those who are obliged to declare assets and income under their management authority.
The Provincial and Municipal Party Committees' Inspection Committees control the assets and incomes of those under the management of the Provincial and Municipal Party Committees' Standing Committees and those who are required to declare their assets and incomes in the Party agencies of the province.
Thus, the Central Inspection Commission and the Inspection Commissions of provincial and municipal Party Committees have officially become the agencies that control assets and income according to the law. This demonstrates the constitutional principle: Party organizations and members of the Communist Party of Vietnam operate within the framework of the Constitution and the law.
The above regulation shows the increasing responsibility and authority of the Party's inspection agency in controlling assets and income, a difficult and complicated issue, playing an important role in the fight against corruption. Those under the direct control of the Party's inspection agency are all pillars of the state apparatus, from the highest positions in the political system.
This control clearly demonstrates the Party's principle of decentralization of cadre management. This also resolves difficulties and obstacles in the implementation of regulations on asset and income control in the past when the provisions of the 2018 Law on Anti-Corruption and the Party's regulations have some points that are not really in sync.
On the other hand, it can be affirmed that the Party's requirements for Party members always demonstrate exemplary vanguardism and therefore, Party members with positions and powers must not only comply with the provisions of the law but also strictly comply with the Party's regulations, once they stand in the vanguard of State and social leadership as affirmed in Article 4 of the Constitution.
The Party Inspection Agency not only performs the tasks and powers of an agency controlling assets and income in general, but also operates on the principles of the Party's supervision and inspection activities, especially in the work of recovering assets.
Regulation No. 287/2025 of the Politburo on recovering assets due to corruption, waste, and negativity discovered through the Party's inspection and supervision work clearly states the grounds for recovering assets due to corruption, waste, and negativity.
The first is based on the conclusions of inspection, supervision, and complaint settlement by the Party Committee and Inspection Committee. The second is based on the conclusions of inspection and verification of assets and income by competent authorities.
Third is based on the decision to recover assets due to corruption, waste, and negativity (if any).
Fourthly, it is based on the fact that party organizations, party members, and related organizations and individuals proactively report and voluntarily return assets received due to corruption, waste, negativity, etc.
It can be seen that the regulation of the role, responsibility and authority of the Party inspection agency in the draft amendment to the Law on Anti-Corruption is a very important new point, contributing to strengthening the power of agencies with the function of preventing and combating corruption, waste and negativity in particular and of the entire political system in general, further improving the effectiveness of the work of controlling assets, income and recovering assets lost or misappropriated due to violations of the law by degenerate and corrupt people.
Currently, the Draft Law amending the Law on Anti-Corruption in 2018 is being widely consulted by all agencies, organizations and individuals. On that basis, responsible agencies will continue to complete the draft and submit it to competent authorities for consideration and approval.
It is hoped that the 2018 Law on Anti-Corruption, after being amended and supplemented, will truly be a strong enough tool to strictly control the assets and income of people with positions and powers, raise awareness, responsibility and honesty in declaring assets as well as improve the effectiveness of recovering corrupt, negative and wasteful assets in the coming time.