The Vietnamese government has directed ministries, branches and localities to strictly implement Anti-corruption Law with focus being placed on transparency in the operations of organisations and agencies and the promotion of investigation, prosecution and judicial activities.
Hoang Thai Duong, deputy head of the Vietnam Government Inspectorate’s Anti-corruption Department stated at a workshop introducing a code of conduct for businesses and principles for the anti-corruption fight, held in Hanoi on June 24.
Preventive measures against corruption, including creating and implementing a code of conduct and professional ethics, have been paid due attention as well, Duong added.
Of total cases taken to court, embezzlement accounted for 57.7 percent, abuse of power in mission execution, 12.8 percent and the bribe-taking, 12.1 percent, he said.
The workshop, jointly held by the Vietnam Government Inspectorate and the Australian Government, is part of a pilot capacity-building project under the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC)’s Anti-corruption and Transparency Expert Task Force (ACT) being implemented in Vietnam , Thailand and Chile in 2009.
According to Peter Brew, Director for Asia-Pacific in International Business Leaders Forum, Vietnamese enterprises still take a passive stance towards corruption.
A survey done by Ernst & Young and the Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) showed that 60 percent of businesses have been asked for a bribe and 96 percent were discovered to be involved in corruption in 2007-2008.
A code of conduct for business should be considered as a positive measure, as its effectiveness has been seen in many countries, he stressed.
Delegates agreed that corruption undermines fair competition between businesses. Businesses should follow suitable principles to fight against this social ill./.
