Former Editor-in-Chief of Thanh Nien newspaper Nguyen Cong Khe is a famous figure in the Vietnamese press circle. He is a person with extensive relationships with top political leaders at in the Southeast Asian nation.
The question that Vietnamese public opinion is currently very interested in is: “Why did they arrest Nguyen Cong Khe at this time, while Mr. Khe’s violations related to the land area 151 – 155 Ben Van Don, happened since 2008, that is more than 15 years ago?”
According to analysts, today is an extremely “sensitive” time in Vietnamese politics, with developments more complicated than ever. After the 8th Plenum of the 13th term, the position and power of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has decreased more than ever. Especially in the closing session of this plenum, General Secretary Trong announced that he would “wash his hands and hang up his sword” to transfer power to someone else to succeed him.
After the above statement, immediately, within the Communist Party of Vietnam, a situation of forming factions appeared to compete for the list of key personnel of the 14th National Congress. These things reached their peak at the end of 2023 and early 2024, when there were rumors that Trong was seriously ill.
Blogger Anh Ba Sam said that Vietnam “will fall into a power vacuum as senior officials are triggering a race to find a leader.”
Another interesting analysis is related to the power relationship between the Northern Communists and the Southern Communists – who have been underdogs in the “four pillars” of personnel in recent years. Since the 12th National Congress, the traditional regional personnel structure has been eliminated, replaced by General Secretary Trong’s “will” and key leaders from the South are almost gone.
Furthermore, who will replace Trong as General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam? When the candidates include: Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh, top legislator Vuong Dinh Hue, State President Vo Van Thuong and security chief To Lam. Analysts say that Chinh, Hue and Lam do not have enough prestige in the Party to be able to take on the responsibility of General Secretary while Thuong is too young, not experienced and reputable enough.
Before the Party Congress, one or two candidates will be introduced. Who will it be? It seems that no one has enough prestige, both within the Party and among the people.
If anything, it could only be former leaders of the South, with names like Nguyen Tan Dung, Truong Tan Sang, and Nguyen Minh Triet. Because they have not been involved in politics for a long time, they still have a certain reputation.
According to knowledgeable people, recently, the Southern Communist faction has been campaigning, demanding that the General Secretary and the Politburo rewrite the rules of the game for the Party’s leadership. In the article “Mr. Nguyen Phu Trong is in a coma?” recently published in Tieng Dan newspaper, author Le Van Doan revealed:
“On August 19, 2023, during the 135th birthday anniversary of President Ton Duc Thang, people noticed that the ‘seniors’ of the South gathered, including: Nguyen Minh Triet, Truong Tan Sang, Nguyen Tan Dung , Nguyen Xuan Phuc… seemed to be an implicit alliance supporting Vo Van Thuong to be promoted to the party chief at the 14th National Congress. In particular, for the first time, Mr. Tu Sang and Ba Dung stood shoulder to shoulder, side by side, intimately in one frame.”
Meanwhile, many opinions believe that the above things are directly related to the fact that former Editor-in-Chief Nguyen Cong Khe was suddenly arrested for a case that happened 15 years ago.
Well-informed people believe that once the senior officials supporting him are out of power, Khe is like a lemon whose juice has been squeezed out, and it is natural for people to throw it in the trash.
But things don’t seem that simple. Recently, in an article titled “Arresting Nguyen Cong Khe for what?” author and journalist Nguyen Huy Vu, gave remarkable assessments and comments. According to the author:
– Arresting Nguyen Cong Khe will bring many benefits to the faction that captured Khe. Through Khe, they get valuable information, and from there, they will control southern politicians. Because, arresting Nguyen Cong Khe’s main task is to exploit information and at the same time find ways to control the power of the Southern Communist faction that is trying to rise.
– As Editor-in-Chief of Thanh Nien newspaper for a long time, Khe is an important central link of the power faction in the South. Kheu naturally became a center of information and power connection in the South. Truong Tan Sang, Nguyen Tan Dung, Nguyen Minh Triet, or the leadership in Saigon, all have more or less connections with Khe.
In short, there are many different opinions on the arrest of Mr. Nguyen Cong Khe.
It is known that in the near future, the 13th Party Central Committee will convene an extraordinary, special plenum to discuss the personnel of the General Secretary before the end of the 13th term.
Let’s wait and see./.
Tra My – Thoibao.de
