23-4-2024 (HANOI) Authorities have taken into custody Pham Thai Ha, the assistant to the head of the National Assembly, as part of an investigation into a local builder, signalling a broadening crackdown on corruption.
Pham Thai Ha, who serves as the deputy head of the National Assembly Office and is an assistant to the parliament chair, was apprehended in connection to an ongoing inquiry into bidding irregularities associated with the Thuan An Group, a prominent local builder, as announced by the Ministry of Public Security.
This development follows swiftly after the arrest of the chairman of Thuan An Group in connection with an alleged bribery case.
Furthermore, two other executives from the company and three officials from the northern province of Bac Giang have also been placed under detention.
According to reports from local media, law enforcement has also requested the provincial government to furnish documentation pertaining to bidding contracts involving Thuan An Group in the central province of Dak Lak.
This case adds to the growing list of investigations initiated under the sweeping anti-corruption campaign spearheaded by the Communist Party chief, Nguyen Phu Trong.
In recent months, there has been a string of high-profile cases, including the sentencing of a property magnate to death for corruption earlier this month. Additionally, in March, the nation witnessed its second president resign within just over a year, citing unspecified violations.
Last year, the National Assembly ousted two deputy prime ministers following the arrest of their assistants in probes related to irregularities associated with a manufacturer of Covid-19 test kits and the management of repatriation flights for Vietnamese citizens during the pandemic.
Thuan An Group, formerly known as Thuan An Construction and Trading Development JSC, was established in 2004, primarily focusing on the construction of transportation infrastructure.
