The rank of General for the Public Security and the Army is usually given to those who are ministers or are about to become ministers. In 2019, To Lam and Luong Cuong were both promoted to General by then State President Nguyen Phu Trong. Lam was then minister, and Cuong was supported by Nguyen Phu Trong to replace Ngo Xuan Lich as Defense Minister.
At the 13th National Congress, Phan Van Giang unexpectedly become Defense Minister. This was considered an “accident” for Cuong. That made him sit in his old position for 3 years waiting for the right opportunity.
On October 20, Lam, as State President, promoted Luong Tam Quang and Nguyen Tan Cuong to the rank of General. Just like Lam and Cuong 5 years ago, Quang is Minister and Nguyen Tan Cuong was Deputy Defense Minister. So clearly this is a preparation step for Nguyen Tan Cuong to become the minister. So what is happening in the Defense Ministry that requires the promotion of a general to a deputy minister like that?
According to information leaked to Thoibao.de, General Giang is suffering from a very serious kidney disease, it seems that he will have difficulty holding on to the position of minister until the end of his term. The situation is becoming more and more serious, Giang will find it difficult to sacrifice his health to hold on to his seat. If he does so, the day he goes to grave will be closer.
We do not know whether Giang’s illness is caused by the fighting situation or is it just a natural illness. We only know that when the political arena is fiercely contested, his illness will become serious. Not being on the throne like Trong, Giang cannot stand above the Party law, he is currently under great pressure to withdraw, it is expected that Cuong will be the person to replace him.
Health issues have long been a secret, people only know when things can no longer be hidden. Since the Communist Party’s political arena has been divided into factions fighting each other without compromise, mysterious deaths have also increased day by day. Nguyen Ba Thanh, Tran Dai Quang, Le Van Thanh, Nguyen Chi Vinh, etc…. not to mention those who were infected with mysterious diseases but did not die immediately but even prolonged their lives for a few years, for example former Defense Minister Phung Quang Thanh and party chief Trong.
The army has many factions but the most powerful are still 2 factions, Giang’s faction mainly consists of the General Staff and General Department 2, and Cuong’s faction mainly consists of the General Department of Politics and another faction that has not been strong for a long time but is now getting more attention, that is Hoang Xuan Chien’s faction. Hoang Xuan Chien became famous because he is a fellow countryman of General Secretary and Secretary of the Central Military Commission To Lam.
It is known that in order to have the rank of general for Quang, Lam also made concessions to the army faction and accepted Cuong’s promotion to general. Notably, Cuong had worked with Giang for many years at the General Staff. Cuong took his place, this was considered a solution to fill the position, Giang’s faction did not want to lose the Minister’s seat to another faction. However, when the seat has not been given to his juniors, everything is possible. The case of Giang himself taking Cuong’s opportunity in 2021 is a typical example.
Notably, if Cuong becomes Minister, the Permanent Deputy Minister will find it difficult to escape the hands of Hoang Xuan Chien. If Cuong takes his place, right behind Cuong will be a figure supported by the General Secretary and Secretary of the Central Military Commission. That shows that the factions are “interlocking” with each other to compete for each position.
Lam’s ambition is very big, not only Hung Yen-izing the Ministry of Public Security but also Hung Yen-izing the party Secretariat. As for the army, Lam still has the ambition to turn Hung Yen into this ministry to seize power.
Thai Ha-Thoibao.de
