Hanoi: The Vietnamese Communist Party on Wednesday (March 20) accepted the resignation of President Vo Van Thuong, the government said in a statement citing"shortcomings", in a sign of political turmoil that could hurt foreign investors' confidence in the country.
The government said in a statement Thuong violated party rules, adding that those "shortcomings had negatively impacted public opinion, affecting the reputation of the Party, State and him personally."
The president holds a largely ceremonial role but is one of the top four political positions in the Southeast Asian nation. He is the youngest member of the party's Politburo, the country's top decision-making body, and is widely regarded as being close to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, Vietnam's most powerful figure.
Trong is the main architect of the party's "blazing furnace" crackdown on graft, under which hundreds of officials have been investigated and many forced to quit, including former president Nguyen Xuan Phuc and two deputy prime ministers.
Thuong's nomination needs approval by the rubber-stamp National Assembly
Thuong's nomination by the party's Central Committee upholds an earlier decision by the Politburo and will need approval by the rubber-stamp National Assembly, which is due to hold an extraordinary session on Thursday and a formal sitting in May.
The president in Vietnam holds a largely ceremonial role, but is among the top four political figures in the country, together with the party's general secretary, the prime minister and the head of the national assembly.
(With inputs from agency)
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