Why Vietnam’s police so severely corrupted today?

Major General Nguyen Anh Tuan, former Deputy Director of the Hanoi Police Department, appeared in court

Vietnamese people often say “there is no smoke without fire” to indicate the source or nature of a problem. Such as the story of police getting rich by manipulating criminal cases, typically the case of Major General Nguyen Anh Tuan – Deputy Director of the Hanoi Police Department- and Lieutenant Colonel Hoang Van Hung – Head of Division 5, Security Investigation Agency of the Ministry of Public Security – received $2.2 million to manipulating criminal investigation in the “rescue flight” case as an example.

In recent years, public opinion has been extremely frustrated by the corruption and moral degradation of the Vietnamese Police force.

The situation of officers in the police sector violating the law, such as: stealing, trafficking in banned substances, kidnapping children for extortion…, with the purpose of making money at any cost like gangsters has become a daily occurrence in everywhere.

People could not believe that the force prioritizing protection of the ruling communist party with the responsibility of ensuring security, order and safety for society, would allow such serious scandals to occur.

Thanh Nien newspaper on December 25 reported, “Impersonating a police officer, defrauding, appropriating nearly VND1 billion.” Actually, this is so common that everyone knows. But it needs to be pointed out to see that distinguishing between fake police and real police is not easy, it can even be “two in one.” That means, the Vietnamese police and the gang of thieves and hooligans… are just one.

According to Thanh Nien newspaper, Tran Thi Hanh pretended to be a police officer to defraud and appropriate nearly VND1 billion from a family in But Son town (Hoang Hoa district, Thanh Hoa province). Previously, the victim’s family was defrauded of VND2.7 billion.

When meeting the victim’s family, Hanh identified himself as a police officer and could help influence the police to quickly find the fraudster and get his money back.

However, after giving money to Hanh, waiting for a long time without any information, the victim’s family found out that Hanh was not a police officer.

Public opinion sees that, in the context of moral degradation as well as the discipline of the police forcr, there has been a disturbing decline. To the point, Dong Thanh Commune Police, Hoc Mon District, Ho Chi Minh City, even turned the Police headquarters into a place to buy and sell stolen goods, as Ho Chi Minh City Law Newspaper reported on December 8, So why do people trust the police?

Public opinion sees that the incident turned the “public headquarters” into a place for buying and selling stolen goods, showing that the police force’s violations of the law do not stop at individuals, but is also an organized crime.

Stories of police officers and soldiers violating the law and acts of “thieves and robbers” in 2023 are all over the state media. Eg:

Lieutenant Nguyen Duc Trung – officer of the Traffic Police Department of Vinh Phuc provincial Police – committed the crime of kidnapping children to extort VND15 billion.

Not long ago, three police officers in Dai Nghia town, My Duc district, Hanoi were investigated, prosecuted and arrested for property theft.

Or in the “rescue flight” trial, the blaming and killing of each other between Lieutenant Colonel Hoang Van Hung and Major General Nguyen Anh Tuan was something that humiliated the police force.

The specific examples just cited reflect the moral degradation of the People’s Police which is known as the “sword and shield” force to ensure the survival of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

Please reiterate, the Standing Secretary of the Secretariat in the 12th term- Politburo member Tran Quoc Vuong – previously warned about the corruption and degeneration of this force, as well as of leaders at all levels, branches, and from the Central Government to local.

Accordingly, Thanh Nien newspaper said that, giving instructions at the National Conference, evaluating the results of Party building organization in 2019, and implementing tasks in 2020, Standing Secretary of the Secretariat Tran Quoc Vuong once saying that, if the cadre work is not done well, the Party will be overthrown by itself, not by the enemy. Mr. Tran Quoc Vuong said:

This is an important issue. Whether or not the legacy we have built over the past 75 years will collapse is because of us, not because of our enemies. No one invaded us, no one brought planes or cannons to invade and overthrow us. If we don’t do well, we will overthrow ourselves.”

That is a very worthy idea for Vietnamese leaders and General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong to seriously think about.

A public question is why the situation of officers and soldiers of the People’s Police under General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, with two generations of Minister of Public Security – General Tran Dai Quang (2011-2016) and General To Lam (2016 to present) – continuously commit crimes, even systematically?

Public opinion finds that the easiest answer is that the house of the People’s Public Security force “leaked from the roof“. With the evidence cited, it shows that the ethics and conduct of police officers and officials are at a seriously alarming level. Is that a consequence of the situation of “unrighteousness at the top, chaos at the bottom“? The same is true not only within the police force, but also in the superstructure of the Vietnamese political apparatus.

Public opinion requests that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and Minister of Public Security To Lam, before the new year 2024, need to clearly answer to the people, “For whom and why do we let the police force” so seriously corrupted?”

Thoibao.de (Translated)

Kasse animation 7.8.2023