HANOI: Vietnamese police on Thursday arrested a former deputy trade minister who was responsible for the country’s renewable energy development, as the communist authorities intensify a crackdown on corruption.
Hoang Quoc Vuong, who was deputy minister of industry and trade from 2010 to 2012 and 2015 to 2020, was taken into custody Thursday for “abusing power while performing official duty”, police said in a statement, without elaborating.
State media reported that in 2012, after his first stint as deputy trade minister, Vuong was board chairman of Vietnam’s state-owned electric utility EVN for three years, before moving back to his position at the ministry of industry and trade.
During his second stint, he was in charge of electricity, renewable energy, environment and sustainable development.
He then became chairman of Vietnam Oil and Gas Group, but retired from that position on January 1 this year, according to the official government website.
Vuong was among several senior trade ministry officials on a list for disciplinary review drawn up by the ruling Communist Party of Vietnam last month, due to their involvement in alleged wrongdoing during the development of solar, wind and other fuel supply projects.
Police last month arrested deputy trade minister Do Thang Hai, who was also on that list, for his involvement in wrongdoing at an oil trading company.
Vietnam has committed to reaching net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, and a group of rich nations last year pledged to raise at least $15.5 billion to help get the nation off fossil fuels.
But the government tolerates no opposition to one-party rule, with critics facing intimidation, harassment and restricted movement, and it has shown little appetite for dissenting voices on environmental issues.
In recent years, Vietnam has ramped up an anti-graft drive on corrupt officials and members of the country’s business elite.
The sweep has been driven by powerful Communist Party Secretary General Nguyen Phu Trong, who last November demanded the purge press ahead “faster and in a more efficient manner”.
More than 3,500 people have been indicted across more than 1,300 graft cases since 2021. -AFP
