The Permanent Member of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee's Secretariat (), informally the Permanent Member of the Secretariat, is a senior position within the Communist Party of Vietnam.
The Permanent Member is appointed by the Politburo, and is responsible for the management of directives and day-to-day work of the Secretariat. A member of both the Politburo and the Secretariat, the officeholder is often considered the fifth most powerful figure in Vietnam's political system — immediately behind the General Secretary of the Central Committee, the President, the Prime Minister and the Chair of the National Assembly.
The current officeholder is Trần Cẩm Tú, who was appointed by a decision of the 13th Politburo on 25 October 2024 to replace Lương Cường, who was appointed as President of Vietnam, succeeding General Secretary Tô Lâm.
History The office was established at the Party's 4th National Congress.
During the tenure of the 8th Central Committee (1996–2001), the Secretariat was replaced by the Politburo Standing Committee, thus, the office was known as Permanent Member of the Politburo Standing Committee.
Selection process Political qualifications A Permanent Member of the Secretariat has to be a Central Committee member. To be elected to the Central Committee, one must show absolute loyalty to the Party’s interests, the nation and the people. Moreover, a Central Committee member must steadfastly commit to Marxism-Leninism, Ho Chi Minh Thought, national independence, socialism and the Party’s line. The Permanent Member must have an unwavering political stance and show political bravery. Therefore, the individual must resolutely protect the Party's ideology, the Party's Platform, the Party's line, the Constitution and the State's laws and combat erroneous views. Moreover, they must be patriotic, always put the interests of the Party, nation and the people above their personal interests, and be willing to sacrifice themself for the Party’s revolutionary cause, national independence and the people’s happiness.
As a Central Committee member, a Permanent Member must have exemplary ethics and live a good lifestyle. The 214-QD/TW regulations state that the Permanent Member has to have exemplary moral qualities such as living honestly, humbly, sincerely, purely, simply, tolerantly, and being thrift, having a high sense of integrity, fairness and impartiality. Furthermore, the regulation stresses that the officeholder must not have ambition for power, while stressing the need for enthusiasm and a high sense of responsibility for work. A Permanent Member cannot be corrupt, seek opportunities for personal profiteering and must resolutely combat, prevent and repel deterioration of political ideology, morality, lifestyle, manifestations of self-evolution, self-transformation, bureaucracy, corruption, negativity, waste, rights and group interests in the party-state. More specifically, the Permanent Member cannot let relatives and acquaintances take advantage of their positions and powers for profit. A Permanent Member must strictly implement the Party's organisational and disciplinary principles, especially the principles of democratic centralism and criticism and self-criticism. It is expected that the officeholder properly exercises their powers and responsibilities and direct the strict implementation of principles, regulations and procedures on cadre work as well as resolutely struggling against manifestations and deeds contrary to the regulations of the Party and the State in cadre work.
Work qualifications Since every Permanent Member has also served concurrently in the Politburo, the party regulation 214-QD/TW of 2020 states explicitly that one must have served a full term in this body before the appointment. To guarantee a successful selection process and that the candidate possesses the appropriate qualifications, it is essential for the Permanent Member to possess the following traits and abilities: a high standing, a core of unity in the Central Committee, the Politburo, the Secretariat, and throughout the Party. Possess a strong degree of political acumen, broad knowledge and expertise in party building and political system construction. The Permanent Member is also expected to be well-informed about politics, economics, culture, society, defence, security and international relations. Understanding of politics, decision-making abilities in management, and the capability to coordinate the staff and agencies of the Party Central Committee, Fatherland Front, and socio-political organisations efficiently and harmoniously are all critical qualifications. Finally, the Permanent Member is expected to have former experience as a secretary of provincial and city committees or as a leader of central commissions, ministries, and branches.
According to party regulation 214-QD/TW, a Permanent Member should possess the following qualities: objectiveness, comprehensiveness, dialectical perspective, an understanding of history, innovative thinking, and strategic vision. Science-based working methods, political acumen, and the capability to lead, direct, and organise the effective implementation of Party policies and guidelines, as well as the laws of the State, are crucial for the officeholder. In addition, she or he must be capable of summarising practice, theoretical research, analysis, and forecasting. A Permanent Member must have an in-depth knowledge of the general situation, the fields, localities, agencies and units assigned to manage and take charge of them. As well as identifying contradictions, challenges, new problems, complex problems, limitations, and weaknesses in practice, the officeholder must also proactively propose feasible and effective tasks and solutions. An ideal candidate should be dynamic, creative, hardworking, industrious, daring to think, act, assume responsibility, do things decisively, and be open to experiencing difficulties. As a result, the permanent member must base his work on the premise that sayings go hand-in-hand with actions. A candidate must have outstanding achievements, have specific results and have made an essential contribution to promoting the development of industries, localities, agencies and units. Moreover, the candidate must be willing to work on issues that are important to the people and be willing to serve the people wholeheartedly. Last, as a Permanent Member, one must be able to form the nucleus that gathers and promotes the synergy of the political system and, as such, must be highly trusted by fellow Party members and the masses.
In addition to these, regulation 214-QD/TW states that the candidate must have obtained a university degree or undergone a course at the party school, the Hồ Chí Minh National Academy of Politics and Public Administration. Experience in state management as a senior specialist or equivalent is also a positive, as well as speaking a foreign language and having basic computer skills. A candidate should also be healthy enough to perform his duties. The candidate must fit the age requirements set by Party's regulations. Furthermore, a candidate should have experience as a successful leader and key manager of direct subordinates before being appointed.
Duties and responsibilities In accordance with Clause 5 of Article 7 of Regulation 80-QD/TW dated 18 August 2022, the Permanent Member is responsible for assuming the prime responsibility for, alongside the Head of the Central Organisation Commission and the Chairman of the Central Inspection Commission, reviewing the election results and deciding on the approval of the newly-elected executive committees, standing committees, secretaries and deputy secretaries. In addition, it must review the election results for inspection commissions and those of provincial committees, city committees and party committees directly under the Central Committee. The Permanent Member can, as long as they are not in breach of the Party's Charter, appoint additional members of standing committees directly under the Central Committee. In addition, the Permanent Member can appoint members of party delegations. Furthermore, the Permanent Member can give opinions on the personnel of members of the Politburo and the Secretariat, the Vice President of Vietnam, deputy prime ministers and the vice chairs of the National Assembly. In accordance with Politburo and/or Secretariat decisions, the Permanent Member may re-appoint cadres under the Secretariat to manage the work of party committees, agencies, units, and social organisations directly under its jurisdiction. In the event that they are not eligible for reappointment, they must inform the relevant authorities.
Officeholders +Permanent Members of the Party Central Committee's Secretariat Portrait Name Took office Left office Duration Gender 1 20 December 1976 31 March 1982 4th CC(1976–1982) 1910 1930 Nghệ An province Male 2 30 April 1980 31 March 1982 1911 1930 Nam Định province Male 3 30 April 1980 31 March 1982 1911 1930 Hải Dương province Male 4 31 March 1982 21 June 1986 5th CC(1982–1986) 1912 1935 Quảng Nam province Male 5 21 June 1986 18 December 1986 1915 1936 Hưng Yên province Male 6 18 December 1986 22 June 1988 6th CC(1986–1991) 1917 1939 Hà Nội City Male 7 22 June 1988 27 June 1991 1918 1939 Bắc Ninh province Male 8 27 June 1991 23 September 1992 7th CC(1991–1996) 1920 1938 Thừa Thiên Huế province Male 9 23 September 1992 1 July 1996 1924 1945 Phúc Yên City Male 10 1 July 1996 16 December 1997 8th CC(1996–2001) 1931 1949 Thanh Hóa province Male 11 16 December 1997 22 April 2001 1936 1965 Hải Dương province Male 12 26 August 1999 22 April 2001 1944 1968 Hà Nội City Male 13 22 April 2001 27 June 2001 9th CC(2001–2006) 1939 1962 Hưng Yên province Male 14 27 June 2001 24 April 2006 1937 1962 Quảng Nam province Male 15 24 April 2006 3 August 2011 10th CC(2006–2011) 1949 1969 Long An province Male 16 3 August 2011 4 February 2016 11th CC(2011–2016) 1949 1968 Kiên Giang province Male 17 4 February 2016 2 March 2018 12th CC(2016–2021) 1953 1974 Nam Định province Male 18 2 March 2018 5 February 2021 1953 1979 Thái Bình province Male 19 5 February 2021 6 March 2023 13th CC(2021–2026) 1970 1993 Vĩnh Long province Male 20 6 March 2023 16 May 2024 1958 1985 Quảng Bình province Female 21 16 May 2024 25 October 2024 1957 1978 Phú Thọ province Male 22 25 October 2024 Incumbent 14th CC(2026–2031) 1961 1990 Hà Tĩnh province Male
Notes
See also
General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam Secretariat of the Communist Party of Vietnam Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam
References