President Vo Van Thuong of Vietnam has resigned after one year in the post.
The ruling Communist Party issued a statement Wednesday announcing Thuong’s resignation, citing “shortcomings” it says led to violations of rules that hurt the reputation of himself and the party.
Thuong succeeded Nguyen Xuan Phuc, who resigned last March amid a massive anti-corruption drive launched by the party’s General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, known as Blazing Furnace. The drive has led to the arrests of thousands of government officials and business leaders in recent years.
Real estate tycoon Truong My Lan went on trial in Ho Chi Minh City on charges she embezzled $12.5 billion from a Saigon-based bank between 2012 and 2022. Lan, who controlled a majority stake in SCB, allegedly embezzled the money by arranging fake loans to numerous shell companies.
Another 85 people are being prosecuted in connection with the case, including Lan’s husband, a wealthy Hong Kong businessman, and several former bank executives and government officials. One ex-government official on trial is accused of receiving $5.2 million in bribes.
Some information for this report came from The Associated Press, Reuters, Agence France-Presse.