HANOI, Vietnam — Vietnam’s ruling Communist Party has nominated its general secretary for the additional post of president, succeeding President Tran Dai Quang, who died last month, and ending a decades-long policy of separating top leadership positions. The government said in a statement that members of the Party Central Committee unanimously agreed to nominate “comrade Nguyen Phu Trong” for the position. Economist Le Dang Doanh, a former government economic adviser, said it makes sense to merge the powerful position of party general secretary with the largely ceremonial presidency, but cautioned that there should be a mechanism to control power. Doanh said it’s unclear whether the country’s next leader will also hold both positions, and the party would decide based on the particular candidate. “In political terms, however, the concentrated power structure will make the Vietnamese political system more unitary and less pluralistic.

Source: Philippine Daily Inquirer October 04, 2018 10:41 UTC