Former Government Office head arrested for power abuse

Spokesman for the Ministry of Public Security To An Xo on Saturday said Dung has been put under investigation for power abuse.

Regarding the Dai Ninh ecotourism project in Lam Dong, the province's chairman Tran Van Hiep, Party Secretary Tran Duc Quan and chief inspector Nguyen Ngoc Anh were arrested early this year for abuse of power and receiving bribes.

Tran Bich Ngoc, head of the agency handling anti-corruption complaints at the Government Office, is also facing charges for abuse of power. Investigation found Ngoc had committed violations when dealing with complaints about the Dai Ninh project, causing losses to the state budget.

Dung, 65, has been a member of the Central Party Committee, as well as the chairman of the People's Committee and secretary of the Party Committee of the northern province Ha Nam. He was the chairman of the Government Office for the 2016-2021 term.

Since his retirement Dung has been disciplined twice. In January 2023, he was given a warning from the Party's Secretariat for negligence regarding the Covid-19 repatriation flight bribery scandal. A year after that, he was reprimanded by the Party's decision-making body Politburo for violations at the Ministry of Industry and Trade.

During his time of active duty, Dung has had several efforts to promote digital transformation and operate the national public service portal to fight corruption.