State Auditor General Ngô Văn Tuấn. — VNA/VNS Photo

State Auditor General Ngô Văn Tuấn speaks to Vietnamplus on the leading role of the State Audit of Việt Nam in the fight against corruption in the era of the nation’s rise.

How do you evaluate the fight against corruption and wastefulness at ministries, sectors and localities based on your actual experience with auditing activities? Which issues require particular attention in order to increase effectiveness?

Auditing results show ministries, sectors and localities have focused on preventing and combatting corruption and wastefulness, as well as strictly managing public finance and assets.

Recently, the State Audit has received audit requests from agencies and units to detect mistakes or wastefulness in public finance management as early as possible, with an aim of improving its effectiveness.

The State Audit also discovered a number of issues, including signs of wastefulness and ineffective use of public resources. We have proposed financial sanctions to increase revenue and reduce State budget expenditures by tens of trillions of Vietnamese đồng each year.

We have proposed reviewing the responsibilities of many collectives and individuals and transferred many cases to relevant agencies for further investigation and enforcement.

The State Audit found that the fight against corruption and wastefulness in managing public finance and assets requires ministries, sectors and localities to focus on a number of areas.

Slow, complex and unrealistic budget allocations, along with a lack of specificity for spending tasks in the recurrent expenditure sector, need to be fixed.

As for investment expenditure, we must solve the shortcomings made by capital allocations when conditions are not met, or are not included in the medium-term public investment plan, as well as allocations beyond implementation capacity. Projects with slow progress reduce investment efficiency and cause wastefulness.

In terms of the management of assets, solutions to land abandonment must be found, along with solutions for incomplete or ineffective use of allocated land area.

What are the primary reasons for loss and wastefulness in the management and use of public funds and resources? What are key solutions that the State Audit suggests?

Based on practice and audit results, we can see that loss and wastefulness has resulted in many serious consequences for development.

Reasons include inadequate mechanisms and policies that overlap, are incomplete, inconsistent or do not keep up with development requirements.

In certain locations and units, discipline and order in the administration of public funds has not been tightened.

The qualifications and professional capacity of a number of law enforcement officers and civil servants are still limited, leading to low operational efficiency.

A solution proposed by the State Audit is to continue to improve, amend and supplement documents and regulations on the management and use of public finance and public assets in a transparent and complete manner.

We also propose strengthening State management of public finance and public assets by linking responsibility with authority and obligation, including personal responsibility, especially for unit leaders.

We should also strictly implement the streamlining of the organisational apparatus and regulations controlling power, as well as preventing and fighting against corruption.

What solutions would the State Audit adopt in the current context, with its various challenges and requirements, to enhance the effectiveness of anti-corruption and wastefulness initiatives while satisfying the expectations of the Party, the State and citizens?

In the current context, the State Audit will closely follow the direction of the Party Central Committee and the resolutions and requirements of the National Assembly to conduct effective auditing activities.

We will audit areas with a high risk of corruption, wastefulness and other issues that are of interest to the public.

We will focus on detecting shortcomings in mechanisms and policies to make recommendations to the Party and State to improve the legal system.

We will use thematic auditing, especially in areas likely to cause major resource waste, such as mineral resources, land, equipment procurement and construction investment.

The State Audit of Việt Nam will disclose audit results, especially cases of waste attached to the responsibilities of relevant organisations and individuals.

It is expected to create pressure and have a strong impact, encouraging the public to participate in monitoring.

Along with the application of information technology and digital transformation, the State Audit will continue to focus on training, fostering professional skills, improving capacity, political will and the professional ethics of auditors.

What is the significance of the recent launch of the State Audit Standards System, especially in preventing and combatting corruption and wastefulness? What steps will the State Audit take to guarantee the successful application of this set of standards?

State Audit Standards are important in preventing and combatting corruption and wastefulness in both auditing and internal management of the State Audit sector.

First, the State Audit Standards System serves as guidance to ensure professionalism and objectivity for State auditors, providing approaches, methods of collecting and evaluating audit evidence and giving audit opinions so that audit results are evaluated objectively and honestly, meeting the trust of audit report readers.

Second, the State Audit Standards System stipulates the responsibilities of State auditors in assessing compliance with laws and regulations to detect acts of non-compliance with the law or fraudulent acts that may lead to corruption or wastefulness, and take appropriate measures.

Third, the State Audit Standards System also promotes the professional ethics and professional capacity of State auditors to further enhance the independence, objectivity and professionalism of State audit activities.

Fourth, the State Audit Standards System is also the basis for monitoring audit activities, enhancing their transparency.

To ensure that the State Audit Standards System is effectively implemented, it is first necessary to raise awareness of the entire sector on the importance of applying the State Audit Standards System.

Other agencies, units and the public need to support monitoring and strengthen coordination with the State Audit so that the State Audit Standards can truly come to life. This is a prerequisite for the State Audit to enhance its capacity and promote its role, contributing to the fight against corruption, wastefulness and other negative phenomena and building an increasingly transparent, healthy and sustainable national financial system.

Could you elaborate on the outstanding results that the State Audit has achieved in preventing and combatting corruption and wastefulness through audit operations, as well as the sector's internal initiatives?

The State Audit has identified the fight against corruption as one of its key tasks.

In order to effectively prevent and combat corruption and wastefulness, the State Audit has fully specified the Party's regulations and the State's laws in documents under its authority, such as the State Audit Standards System and the State Audit's Audit Procedures.

Through auditing activities, the State Audit has pointed out shortcomings in the management and use of public finance and public assets of audited units.

It has also proposed a way to recoup losses from these shortcomings, and recommended fixing loopholes in mechanisms and policies that can easily lead to corruption and wastefulness.

The State Audit also attaches special importance to preventing and combatting corruption and wastefulness within the sector through the dissemination and strict implementation of resolutions and directives. We all ensure transparency in operations, assets and income, as well as in the recruitment, transfer, rotation and appointment of officials. VNS