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

State Auditor General Ngô Văn Tuấn has been talking about the significant results achieved in the fight against corruption and negativity through the auditing activities of the State Audit Office of Việt Nam, on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of its establishment (July 11, 1994 - 2024).

Please share with us some of the significant results achieved in the fight against corruption?

In line with the Party and State's policies, the provisions of the Law on State Audit and the Law on Anti-Corruption, the State Audit Office of Việt Nam has consistently identified the prevention and the fight against corruption and negativity as one of its core tasks in auditing activities.

As a result, the office has been gradually improving its functions, tasks and affirming its important role in combating corruption and negativity within the political system.

The efforts of the office through auditing activities are evident in the following three aspects.

Firstly, every year, the office conducts an average of about 250 audits, evaluating and confirming the accuracy of thousands of financial reports and settlement reports of units and projects. Through auditing activities, the office detected and recommended handling of financial violations, resulting in an increase of billions of đồng in the State budget revenue and reduced expenditures each year. It also recommends disciplinary action against relevant collectives and individuals and transfers audit records to competent authorities for investigation and prosecution as regulations.

Every year, the office also provides hundreds of sets of documents and materials to the National Assembly agencies and other competent authorities for examination, inspection and supervision according to their functions and powers.

Secondly, for the first time, the office issued audit procedures for cases with signs of corruption, accompanied by Decision No. 07/2023/QĐ-KTNN based on the specific provisions of Article 78 of the Law on Anti-Corruption. It stipulates that in cases of criminal signs, the audit shall immediately transfer the files and recommend the investigating agency to consider initiating criminal proceedings.

In practice, the office applied the procedure to two audits (compensation and resettlement activities at the Long Thành International Airport's project; land allocation, land use fees and land rental fees for some land-use projects in Đồng Nai Province) and submitted reports to the Central Steering Committee for Anti-Corruption and Anti-Negativity and provided documents to competent authorities as required.

Thirdly, through auditing activities, the office proposed that relevant authorities plug loopholes in mechanisms and policies to serve the effective management and use of public resources.

This is one of the important contributions of the office in perfecting institutions, improving the business environment and creating conditions to promote healthy and transparent economic development. Annually, the office recommends that relevant authorities consider amending, supplementing, replacing or abolishing about 200 legal normative documents and other management documents.

The public also views anti-corruption and anti-negativity efforts within the competent authority itself. So, how does the State Audit Office of Việt Nam carry out the work?

Throughout the past 30 years, the office has consistently upheld the core values of 'Independence, Integrity, Professionalism, Trustworthiness and Quality.' As a tool of the Party and State in inspection and supervision of the management and use of public finances and assets, to fulfill its mission of preventing and combating corruption and negativity, the office determines that, first and foremost, it is necessary to do a good job of preventing and combating corruption and negativity within the office itself.

The office has strictly adhered to Party resolutions, policies and legal provisions on anti-corruption and anti-negativity, especially the directives of Party General Secretary and Head of the Central Steering Committee for Anti-Corruption and Anti-Negativity Nguyễn Phú Trọng. The office has also institutionalised Party and State regulations on anti-corruption and anti-negativity into its activities, building and revising systems of regulations to align with Decision No. 131-QĐ/TW of the Politburo, such as professional ethics standards; rules of conduct for State auditors; audit procedures and quality control of audits.

Immediately after being elected as the State Auditor General by the National Assembly, the State Auditor General issued Directive No. 1346/CT-KTNN on strengthening discipline, resolutely combating corruption and negativity in the implementation of public duties. The office has also enhanced education to raise the awareness, consciousness and professional self-esteem of State auditors. In addition, the office has strengthened regular and random inspections, focusing on verifying the asset declarations and incomes of officials, inspecting and verifying corrupt and negative acts in the performance of official duties and closely coordinating with ministries, sectors and localities in supervising audit teams' activities.

The office has established a hotline to receive information on corruption and negativity in audit activities and State auditors. It makes regular position changes and missions for officials and civil servants to prevent and combat corruption and negativity in accordance with the Party's directives. It rigorously handles violations of professional ethics, codes of conduct and acts of corruption and negativity in audit activities.

How does the State Audit Office coordinate with relevant agencies in the fight against corruption and negativity?

Based on the assigned functions and tasks, the office has proactively coordinated with relevant agencies in the fight against corruption and negativity to leverage the strengths of each agency and organisation to successfully accomplish the task of combating corruption and negativity in the management and use of public finances and assets.

Over the past five years (2019-23), the office has provided 1,609 audit reports and related documents to the National Assembly agencies, the Inspection Commission of the Party Central Committee, the Ministry of Public Security and other competent State agencies for investigation and supervision work.

The office signed a coordination charter with the Party Central Committee’s Commission for Internal Affairs, the Central Inspection Committee, the Government Inspectorate of Việt Nam, the Ministry of Public Security, the Ministry of National Defence, and relevant agencies and localities. At the same time, they are reviewing whether to add content on 'coordination in detecting, transferring, receiving, resolving allegations and reports of crimes, and initiating prosecutions for cases with signs of corruption and negative economic practices' in the regulations with other units.

Following the Conclusion of Party General Secretary and Head of the Central Steering Committee for Anti-Corruption and Anti-Negativity Nguyễn Phú Trọng, at the 24th meeting of the committee on August 16, 2023, the office worked with relevant units to build the Joint Circular on coordinating the exchange of information on crimes and handling prosecution proposals discovered through auditing activities in accordance with regulations.

Could you tell us why the State Audit conducts many audits, but the detection of legal violations with criminal implications for referral to investigative agencies remains limited?

Firstly, it must be asserted that the activities of the State audit are not investigative or prosecutorial in nature. According to international conventions and regulations, the role of the State audit is to evaluate and confirm the accuracy and honesty of financial information or financial reports, the compliance with laws and the effectiveness in the management and use of public finances and assets. This is carried out based on sampling principles, on the basis of records and documents provided by the audited units, organisations and related individuals at the time of the audit.

In an analogy, the State Audit Office functions like a general practitioner, conducting clinical examinations for patients. When signs of illness are detected, they are referred to specialist doctors (investigative agencies) for in-depth evaluation and conclusions.

In the field of auditing, there is the concept of investigative auditing to record investigations related to the audited activities of organisations and individuals. However, the investigation is only conducted to clarify and provide additional information and documents from relevant parties to supplement the basis for making audit assessments, comments, or conclusions; not to determine legal violations. Therefore, although the concept has been mentioned early on in international auditing activities, since 1940 and only applied in 1980, currently, only a few newly developed countries apply investigative auditing.

Even the International Organisation of Supreme Audit Institutions (INTOSAI) itself has not provided guidance or standards regarding the issue. This is a common challenge faced by audit institutions in detecting legal violations with criminal implications for referral to investigative agencies.

What are solutions the State Audit has to do to better fulfill the task of anti-corruption and anti-negative in the coming time?

To further enhance the role of the office in anti-corruption and anti-negative tasks, we have identified several solutions.

We will enhance the dissemination of legal provisions regarding the State Audit at all levels of State agencies and society to ensure a correct understanding of the role, legal status, functions and tasks of the State Audit in general and in anti-corruption and anti-negative phenomena in particular.

We are proposing amendments to the Law on State Audit, which specifically stipulates the responsibilities of the State Audit in anti-corruption and anti-negative activities. This aims to institutionalise the Party's new documents in this work, as well as to be consistent with anti-corruption and anti-negative laws.

We will strengthen coordination with agencies responsible for anti-corruption and anti-negative activities in detecting, investigating and handling cases with signs of legal violation. The office also will improve the quality and efficiency of audit activities, enhance the application of information technology in audit activities, build a team of civil servants and State auditors to meet both quantity and quality requirements.

The office will also strictly handle cases of violations of audit regulations, professional ethics and laws to ensure the quality and effectiveness of audit work, meeting the trust of the Party, State and people in the State Audit. — VNS