In the context of the approaching 15th Plenum of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV)’s Central Committee, on social networks, there has appeared a lot of information considered „unfavorable“ related to the lavish life of General Secretary To Lam and his wife Ngo Phuong Ly.
According to observers, public attention has shifted from major economic cases to seemingly small details, but with deep symbolic meaning: personal assets and lifestyles of high-ranking officials.
Recently, General Secretary To Lam was seen wearing a watch believed to be a Patek Philippe worth billions of VND during a test trip to the Ben Thanh-Suoi Tien metro line in Ho Chi Minh City in early 2025.
There is also the information about his fellow Hung Yen native Vu Quang Toan, Director of the Anti-smuggling Investigation Department, General Department of Customs, who is also wearing a similar luxury watch.
That has sparked a fierce debate about public ethics, and transparency among the leadership class, as well as state officials in Vietnam, which is completely contrary to the policy of saving.
It is worth mentioning that the events just recounted were widely reported by the media, an effort by the state-controlled media to build the image of a leader „close to the people“ to narrow the gap between the government and the people.
However, this media effect has seriously backfired when the lens accidentally exposed the watches on the wrists of the leaders, rumored to be worth up to billions of dong.
This is an asset worth as much as a house that many Vietnamese people have to work very hard to buy.
Public opinion believes that the core problem here does not lie in the expensive watch itself, but in the moral contradiction between the words and actions of the leader of the Communist Party of Vietnam.
In a country where the average income per capita is still modest like in Vietnam, when a series of officials have been disciplined, even imprisoned for corruption. The fact that a national leader openly flaunts his personal assets has created public outrage.
In particular, for party chief To Lam, who plays a key role in the fight against corruption, the image of the billion-dollar Patek Philippe watch has unintentionally tarnished the image of the leader of the party.
The public has the right to ask: If a watch is worth more than To Lam’s total legal income for many years, what is the origin of that asset? If it is not a corrupt asset?
This directly undermines people’s trust in the „furnace“ campaign and in the integrity of the leader.
The case of Vu Quang Toan, an official with the position of Director of the Anti-Smuggling Investigation Department, a field of work that has potential risks of corruption and bribery, further complicates the issue.
The fact that Toan, who is from the same hometown as General Secretary To Lam in Hung Yen, was also discovered wearing a luxury watch has raised questions about the relationship between compatriots, factions and power patronage.
The incident of billion-dollar watches of officials has reflected a deep crisis of trust. Luxurious symbols such as this billion-dollar watch have become living proof, showing the difference between rich and poor between officials and the people.
The public display of lavish assets by senior leaders is not only a personal issue but also a political and public ethics issue. It has been eroding the prestige of the ruling communist party and the state, and weakening the message of „diligence, thrift, integrity, and uprightness“ that the political system always upholds.
Tra My – Thoibao.de
