Thayer Consultancy Background Brief

ABN # 65 648 097 123

Vietnam: Perfecting the State
Apparatus
May 23, 2024

To Lam has been removed from his post as Minister of Public Security. What does this
personnel adjustment mean for To Lam? Why did the Vietnamese political hierarchy
finally make such a decision?
ANSWER: When the Central Committee of the Vietnam Communist Party made its
decision to nominate To Lam as the next state President it did not make a concurrent
decision to require him to resign as Minister of Public Security.
At a press conference on 19 May, before the National Assembly met to consider the
Central Committee’s nominations of fill the vacancies of state President and Chairman
of the National Assembly, its General Secretary Bui Van Cuong stated “As competent
agencies have not yet nominated personnel for the post of the Minister of Public
Security, the legislature will not work on this position at the meeting.”
On 20 May, when the National Assembly met, General Secretary Luong Cuong
reported that there had been a change in the work programme “based on opinions
from relevant authorities, the law and on a proposal from the prime minister.”
Vietnamese media reported that Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh submitted a
proposal to perfect the State apparatus without providing further details.
On 21 May, General Secretary Cuong presented a report to deputies on behalf of the
Standing Committee of the National Assembly to adjust its work programme. The
deputies voted to accept the report 468 votes out of 469 present. As a result, To Lam
was relieved from his post as Minister of Public Security. He was subsequently elected
state President on 22 May.
It is likely that the Prime Minister’s report recommended against the state President
simultaneously holding a ministerial post in the Cabinet under the authority of the
Prime Minister. This would have blurred responsibilities under the Constitution.
When President Tran Dai Quang died in office in 2016, his post was held concurrently
by the party General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. This did not blur responsibility as
senior members of the Politburo also hold state positions including President, Prime
Minister and Chair of the National Assembly.
President To Lam is now the second ranking leader in Vietnam as one of the ‘four
pillars’. He will serve until his term expires in May 2026.
 2

To Lam is one of three members of the current Politburo who has completed one 5-
year term in office. The other members are Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and
General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. If General Secretary Trong cannot complete his
present term prior to the fourteenth congress scheduled for early 2026, both Chinh
and Lam are the most likely candidates to fill in as party leader.
General Secretary Trong heads the personnel subcommittee that is vetting candidates
for election to the next Central Committee and higher political office to be elected at
the fourteenth congress.
To Lam is free to put his name forward as a candidate. He would have to be exempted
from the mandatory retirement age of 65 on the grounds of exemplary service. Also,
To Lam would have to pass successfully through five stages: selection by the
personnel subcommittee, recommended by the Politburo, selected by the current
Central Committee, elected to the new Central Committee by nearly, 1,500 delegates
to the fourteenth congress, elected to the Politburo by the new Central Committee,
and once elected to the Politburo be elected by the new Central Committee as party
General Secretary.
Tran Quoc To, the Permanent Deputy Minister of Public Security, will serve as Acting
Minister until the Central Committee makes a recommendation on a new minister.
The Central Committee would have to convene a special session or consider this issue
at its next plenum usually held in October. The nomination to be appointed Minister
of Public Security must be approved by the National Assembly.

Suggested citation: Carlyle A. Thayer, “Vietnam: Perfecting the State Apparatus,”

Thayer Consultancy Background Brief, May 23, 2024. All background briefs are posted
on Scribd.com (search for Thayer). To remove yourself from the mailing list type,
UNSUBSCRIBE in the Subject heading and hit the Reply key.

Thayer Consultancy provides political analysis of current regional security issues and
other research support to selected clients. Thayer Consultancy was officially
registered as a small business in Australia in 2002.