Most members of the National Assembly
Standing Committee say they are happy with the steps taken in the past five
years to complete the nation’s legal system.

On May
24, 2005, Resolution 48 was passed by the Party Politburo outlining strategy to
develop the system by 2010 and a vision to complete it by 2020.

“That
was the first ever comprehensive and long-term strategy on law building and law
enforcement in Viet Nam,” the delegates said.

A report
presented by Nguyen Van Thuan, chairman of the Law Committee, said up until
November 2010, the National Assembly passed 128 laws while the National Assembly
Standing Committee approved 21 ordinances.

“It is
expected by the end of March, 2011, five more laws will be passed by the
existing National Assembly before the general election in May,” said Thuan.

“The
legal documents issued in the past five years laid a firm foundation for the
country’s socio-economic development, for national security and defence,” said
Truong Thi Mai, chairwoman of the Social Affairs Committee; Phung Quoc Hien,
chairman of the Financial and Budgetary Committee; and Pham Minh Tuyen, head of
Delegates Affairs.

“These
legal documents have responded in a timely fashion to the requirements of
building a socialist state governed by the rule of law – and of turning the
country into a modern and industrial nation,” they said.

The
Minister of Justice, Ha Hung Cuong, said it was important to have a precise
assessment of the current status of the legal system.

“Having
a correct assessment will help us adjust our strategy for the next 10 years. As
we all know, having a good set of laws is a firm foundation for sustainable
socio-economic development,” said Cuong. In his report reviewing the
implementation of Resolution 48, Thuan said there were five key lessons.

First,
the principle of Party leadership must prevail throughout the process of law
building and enforcement.

Second,
there must be close co-operation between government agencies down to the
grassroots level.

The
third lesson was to set priorities for each stage

The
fourth was having community support in supervising law enforcement.

And
finally, a contingent of loyal, competent and pure law officers must be built.

Based on
lessons learned in the past five years, Thuan said that in the next 10, the
Legislative Body should give top priority to building a Socialist State governed
by the rule of law of the people, for the people and by the people.

Another task the National Assembly should look at would be to
review the 1992 constitution and make any changes necessary.

In the
afternoon session, the NA Committee discussed the independent audit law with
State management over regulations relating to the practice of auditors, audit
businesses, compulsory audit and audit and financial reports, which was the
hottest topic up for discussion.

A number
of deputies said the quality of financial audit reports at some businesses
remained low because auditors failed to deeply examine and assess the content of
multiple financial reports. They emphasised the need to regulate what content
can and cannot be ignored when reports are made.

Regarding audit businesses, Chairman of the NA Committee for the Financial
Budget Phung Quoc Hien agreed to reject a regulation stating that the director
or director general of limited companies must contribute 10 per cent of their
charter capital because under the business law, heads of limited companies with
two members upwards are allowed to hire a director or director general to manage
their businesses.

Concerning types of audit organisations, Vice Chairman of the NA Economic
Committee Nguyen Van Phuc said audited limited companies should not be
established since human resources are more important than capital.

He also
said the finance ministry should not be assigned to organise examinations or
grants, or revoke and manage audit certificates while granting auditing
registration certificates. These should be the responsibility of training
facilities or professional associations.

Concerning regulations that require foreign auditors to pass the examination on
Viet Nam’s laws in Vietnamese, finance minister Vu Van Ninh said this rule was
essential because the number of foreign auditors is limited and they need to be
able to sign in audit reports in Vietnamese.

VietNamNet/Viet
Nam News