The National Assembly of Vietnam is set to begin the process of electing a new president tomorrow after a series of leadership shifts plunged the communist state into an unusual period of political turmoil.
In a statement, Nguyen Thanh, head of the deputies’ committee, said the following:
The party central committee agreed to recommend personnel with appropriate conditions and will submit to the national assembly to approve the position of the state president of the socialist republic of Vietnam.
The wide-ranging anti-corruption campaign, launched in 2021, has targeted several high-ranking officials, including two presidents and three deputy prime ministers, breaking a decades-long pattern in which all changes were planned with a focus on stability.
Besides, the assembly is expected to assess socio-economic results, including recovery from Typhoon Yagi, the State budget for 2024 and financial plans for next year, social housing and the property market, anti-corruption and crime prevention efforts, and consider voter recommendations. Vice Chairman Nguyen Khac Dinh said:
This is only a tentative program, only when the delegates vote and approve it will it become an official program. However, there will not be many changes because the National Assembly Standing Committee has asked for opinions from delegations many times on this content.
Current President To Lam was appointed as Communist Party general secretary in August after the death of his predecessor Nguyen Phu Trong, who held both positions at the same time between October 2018 and April 2021.
The process of selecting a president is part of the personnel tasks on the tentative agenda of the upcoming 15th Assembly. Earlier, the 10th session of the 13th Party Central Committee reached a consensus on qualified candidates for the presidency for the period 2021-2026.
