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Vietnam President Nguyen Xuan Phuc resigns
By Joe Fisher
Vietnam’s President Nguyen Xuan Phuc announced he will step down from his position following a number of changes among the country’s leadership in recent days.
File Photo by John Minchillo/UPI | License Photo
Jan. 17 (UPI) -- Vietnam's President Nguyen Xuan Phuc announced he will step down from his position following a number of changes among the country's leadership in recent days.
Phuc is the third high-level official to either resign or be dismissed from his position this month following the dismissal of two deputy prime ministers, Pham Binh Minh and Vu Duc Dam. The National Assembly will meet Wednesday to make the resignation official.
As president, Phuc played a key role in Vietnam's Communist Party and its policymaking committee, the Politburo. In a statement by his party he was thanked for his service, but it was also noted that he was responsible for violations by those serving under him.
Other government officials who served with Phuc are facing criminal charges related to corruption and misconduct.
"As he was well aware of his responsibilities to the Party and the people, Phuc filed a request to resign from his positions and retire," said the statement obtained by VN Express International.
In 2022, the Communist Party prosecuted or disciplined some 539 members in an effort by general secretary Nguyen Phu Trong to rein in corruption.
Is this extraordinary level of corruption peculiar to Communists? Or is it common to all government parties? It is definitely not restricted to Vietnam.
Vietnam has greatly increased its efforts to rid the corruption among its government officials and business leaders, increasing the investigation of corruption cases by 50% in 2022, engaging in 453 investigations.
Phuc served as prime minister from 2016 to 2021 before being elected president in April 2021.
Former deputy prime minister Dam was ousted in connection with a scheme involving the distribution of COVID-19 testing kits. One of Dam's primary responsibilities was leading the country's pandemic response.
Did he have a deal with the party that he would resign if they stopped investigating him? What do you think?
Former European Parliament member to give details in bribery scandal
Obviously, being a member of the European Parliament does not require a moral compass as a prerequisite.
By Clyde Hughes
Former European Parliament member Pier Antonio Panzeri agreed on Tuesday to cooperate with authorities
in connection with the bribery scandal. Photo by Stephanie Lecocq/EPA-EFE
Jan. 17 (UPI) -- Former European Parliament member Pier Antonio Panzeri said on Tuesday he will work with prosecutors investigating an alleged bribery scheme.
Panzeri agreed to offer "revealing, truthful and complete statements" about third parties involved in the scandal as well as his own involvement "if applicable" in exchange for a possible reduced prison sentence, Belgium's federal prosecutor said.
Prosecutors accuse Panzeri of accepting money from the governments of Qatar and Morocco in exchange for influencing decisions in the parliament.
Panzeri, who served in the European Parliament from 2004-2019, is charged along with three others for money laundering, corruption and participating in a criminal organization after police found nearly $1.62 million in bags of cash at several locations around Brussels, including Panzeri's home.
The Belgian prosecutor said in its ongoing investigation that Panzeri will tell detectives details showing if foreign countries, including Qatar, illegally influenced the parliament's work, how the bribery scheme operated and who was involved.
He is also expected to turn over financial documents connected with his arrangements with those countries and who directly benefited.
Panzeri also agreed to admit to bribery, pay a fine and forfeit the assets he obtained, said to total more than $1 million.
An Italian court ruled on Monday that the Panzeri's daughter Silvia Panzeri could be extradited to Belgium because she allegedly knew of her father's activities. She has denied the allegations.
The scandal also ensnared Eva Kaili, a Greek legislator, who at the time served as the European Parliament's vice president.
Kaili was removed from her European Parliament post in December after being arrested in connection with the scheme.
