State Auditor General: Tighten discipline and transparency in asset declaration

On the morning of July 2, National Assembly deputies at constituency No. 4, including comrades Ho Duc Phoc - Member of the Party Central Committee, State Auditor General; Tran Van Mao - Deputy Head of the Provincial National Assembly Delegation and Dinh Thi Kieu Trinh - Deputy Head of the Gender Equality Division of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, met with voters of Vinh City.

National Assembly deputies meet voters in Vinh City. Photo: Thanh Le

There are still "loopholes" in land management.

Voters and people of Vinh City trust and are excited to appreciate the leadership and direction of the Government, central ministries, branches and the entire political system in leading the implementation of socio-economic development, especially in the prevention and control of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has been highly appreciated by the international community, creating people's trust in the leadership of the Party and State.

At the conference, there were 18 opinions of voters reflecting their thoughts, aspirations, and recommendations to the National Assembly delegates. Currently, many high-rise apartment buildings are being built, causing too much pressure on the urban infrastructure system, fire prevention and fighting work is limited, potentially causing high risks of fire and explosion, and the management board has not been established. It is recommended that the relevant agencies promptly review, rectify and have specific regulations on apartment management.

Voters requested the Provincial People's Committee to inform the people about the results of handling the incident related to clean water supply reflected in 2019. At the same time, inspect the clean water sold to people currently using.

Many plots of land in Vinh city do not have their owners listed. People believe that these plots of land belong to speculators and cannot be ruled out as illegal assets. This is a major loophole in land management in particular and assets in general. We suggest that the State take measures to inspect and put them under management.

Voter Nguyen Duc Thai, Quan Bau ward (Vinh city) proposed tightening asset declaration for officials. Photo: Thanh Le

Voters in Vinh city suggested that the Government direct the electricity sector to abandon the current 6-level ladder electricity price calculation method and only set 1 electricity price for household use and 1 electricity price for production and business.

Voter Nguyen Canh Toan, Le Loi ward, reflected on the implementation of Resolution 22/NQ-HDND dated December 12, 2019 of the Provincial People's Council on the number, titles, allowance levels, policies and regimes for non-professional workers and other subjects in communes, wards, towns, blocks, hamlets and villages in Nghe An province.

"The regulations on allowance levels and regulations on allowance payments for people directly participating in work in blocks and hamlets are calculated based on the days of direct mobilization to participate, causing difficulties and inadequacies in implementation.

"I think there needs to be a name that matches the nature, the payment process should be simple and transparent because in reality the work in the block and hamlet is very complicated, it is difficult to find people to do the work but has not received the proper attention" - Mr. Toan said.

Tighten discipline in asset declaration

Mr. Nguyen Duc Thai, Quan Bau ward, said that the policy of declaring assets of officials at all levels is the right policy to evaluate the assets of officials at all levels. Thereby, the Party and the State will grasp the economic and material conditions of officials, and at the same time demonstrate the honesty of officials. If this is done well, it will be possible to manage officials, and at the same time help the work of preventing and fighting corruption to be more favorable.

However, it is regrettable that this policy has not been seriously implemented in the past, leading to a number of officials with positions and power taking advantage of it to illegally enrich themselves. We request that the Party, the National Assembly and the State resolutely and strictly implement the work of asset declaration.

In addition, Vinh city voters suggested that the government should lower the age for receiving support for the elderly and strictly handle cases of receiving fake war invalid benefits.

Voters also proposed to increase the annual worship money for martyrs; reflect on the slow payment of compensation for land clearance. Request the National Assembly and the Government to adjust construction prices, amend the Land Law to suit reality,...

Receiving and clarifying voters' opinions on allowances for block and hamlet officials, the State Auditor General said that the payment of allowances for block and hamlet officials is carried out by the Provincial People's Council according to Government regulations, depending on the provincial budget.

Comrade Ho Duc Phoc - State Auditor General received and explained the recommendations of Vinh City voters. Photo: Thanh Le

For Nghe An province, a poor province that has not yet balanced its revenue and expenditure budget, it needs support from the Central Government, so the payment of policies and regimes faces many difficulties. The provincial National Assembly delegation received and sent to the provincial People's Council the opinions of voters reflecting on the inadequacies in the implementation of Resolution 22 of the provincial People's Council.

Regarding the issue of asset declaration, the State Auditor General said that the National Assembly has just issued the Law on Anti-Corruption, which clearly stipulates regulations on asset and income declaration of officials. Thereby, asset declaration is strictly implemented, thoroughly assessed, and transparent to prevent and combat corruption.

"Recently, through verification and discovery, a number of officials were disciplined with demotion and dismissal due to incorrect asset declarations," said the head of the State Audit.

Regarding the proposal to amend the Land Law, comrade Ho Duc Phoc said that the National Assembly has a policy at the 9th session to discuss and collect opinions on the amended Land Law at the next session of the National Assembly, especially related to the issue of land prices, leased land and allocated land, compensation prices for site clearance, etc.

Other opinions and recommendations of Vinh city voters were compiled by the Provincial National Assembly Delegation and recommended to competent agencies, ministries and branches for resolution.