HCMC – At its extraordinary meeting in Hanoi in the afternoon today, June 6, the Party Central Committee decided to expel Health Minister Nguyen Thanh Long and Hanoi City Chairman Chu Ngoc Anh from the Communist Party of Vietnam.
On June 4, Party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong presided over a meeting of the Politburo and the Secretariat to mull disciplinary measures against the Party Civil Affairs Committees in the 2016-2021 tenure of the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Health.
The meeting concluded that Chu Ngoc Anh, who served as Party Secretary and Minister at the Ministry of Science and Technology in the 2016-2021 term, and Nguyen Thanh Long, who also serves as Party Secretary at the Ministry of Health, had committed degradation in political ideology, morality and lifestyle; infringed Party and State regulations; violated the don’ts for Party members and the rules on responsibility for exemplary performance; caused serious consequences and big losses for the State budget; left negative impact on the Covid-19 response effort; caused public concerns; and left a poor impression on the reputation of the Party organizations, and the ministries of Science-Technology and Health.
Therefore, the Politburo requested the Party Central Committee discipline Anh and Long for their violations.
The Party Central Committee called the extraordinary meeting today to consider disciplinary measures against the two Party Central Committee members. Given their grave infringements of Party and State regulations, the committee decided to deprive Anh and Long of their Party membership.
The National Assembly Standing Committee will meet tomorrow to look into Nguyen Thanh Long’s eligibility as a deputy of the National Assembly, the country’s law-making body. Given Long’s loss of Party membership, he will certainly lose his National Assembly seat.
The Hanoi City People’s Council will convene a meeting tomorrow to consider whether Chu Ngoc Anh is fit as a member of the council due to his violations. As he is no longer a Party member, he cannot remain on the council.
The Party Central Committee’s Inspection Commission on March 31 issued a statement saying that Minister of Health Nguyen Thanh Long and Hanoi City Chairman Chu Ngoc Anh, who formerly served as Minister of Science and Technology, must take responsibility for Viet A Technology Corporation’s price gouging of Covid-19 test kits.
The statement came out after the commission’s 13th session from March 28 to 31.
At the session, the Inspection Commission considered the results of an inspection into alleged violations of the Party Civil Affairs Committees of the Ministry of Science and Technology, and the Ministry of Health in the 2016-2021 tenure.
The Inspection Commission found that the Party Civil Affairs Committee and leaders of the Ministry of Science and Technology showed a lack of responsibility, slack leadership and poor supervision. They also let some leaders of the ministries and agencies violate the Party’s rules and the State regulations on the approval of agencies to sign contracts and assess, manage, inspect, supervise and pay costs for the research and production of Covid-19 test kits of the Vietnam Military Medical Academy.
The ministry must also be held responsible for promoting and proposing commending and rewarding the Vietnam Military Medical Academy, Viet A Technology Corporation and some individuals.
Meanwhile, the Party Civil Affairs Committee and leaders of the Ministry of Health were found to be irresponsible. They were also found to have shown poor leadership and supervision, allowing leaders of the ministry and its subordinates to commit violations in inspecting, monitoring, licensing and negotiating the prices of and buying Covid-19 test kits of Viet A.
Anh and Long must bear responsibility for these violations and for mistakes in performing their duties and tasks. Besides them, Deputy Minister of Science and Technology Pham Cong Tac, Deputy Minister of Health Nguyen Truong Son and other leaders and officials of the two ministries must also be held accountable.
According to the Inspection Commission, their wrongdoings have caused serious consequences and losses in money and assets for the State, sparked public concern and damaged the prestige of the Party and the Ministries of Science and Technology and Health, calling for disciplinary measures.
