Vietnamese president resigns amid major anti-corruption purge

Vietnam President Nguyen Xuan Phuc has resigned after days of rumours he was about to be sacked as part of a major anti-corruption drive that has seen several ministers fired.

The sudden departure, reported by state media on Tuesday, is a highly unusual move in communist Vietnam, where political changes are normally carefully orchestrated, with an emphasis on cautious stability.

Only one other Communist Party president has ever stepped down, and that was for health reasons.

State media said the Communist Party had ruled that he was responsible for wrongdoing by senior ministers under him during his 2016-2021 stint as prime minister before he became president.

Two deputy prime ministers were sacked this month in an anti-corruption purge that has led to the arrest of dozens of officials, with many of the graft allegations relating to deals done as part of Vietnam's Covid pandemic response.

Phuc "took political responsibility as leader when several officials, including two deputy prime ministers and three ministers committed violations and shortcomings, causing very serious consequences", state news agency VNA said, quoting the party central committee's official statement.

Earlier this month, the country's National Assembly removed Pham Binh Minh, who was minister of foreign affairs and Vu Duc Dam from their positions as deputy prime ministers.

At least 100 officials and businesspeople, including Dam's assistant, have been arrested in connection with a scandal involving the distribution of Covid-19 testing kits.

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Corruption, infighting 

Vietnam is run by the Communist Party and officially led by the party's general secretary, president and prime minister, with key decisions made by the politburo, which now numbers 16.

Le Hong Hiep, a fellow at the ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute in Singapore, said Phuc's resignation may also be linked to political infighting.

"It's mainly related to corruption investigations but we cannot rule out the possibility that his political rivals also wanted to remove him from his position for political reasons," he told AFP.

Communist Party leader Nguyen Phu Trong, the architect of what is Vietnam's largest-ever anti-corruption drive, is due to step down in 2026.

"Some politicians will try to get the (top) prize, and because of the competition from their rivals -- in this case, Mr Phuc is one of them -- they may want to remove him to clear the way for the other candidate to get the top job."

Among the candidates to replace Phuc is To Lam, the current minister of public security, said Hiep, adding that the change would likely not have significant consequences for the direction of the country.

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