The dismissal of National Assembly Chairman Vuong Dinh Hue adds to growing political instability in the country.

President Vo Van Thuong resigned in March — a little more than a year after the previous head of state, Nguyen Xuan Phuc, stepped down to take political responsibility for pandemic corruption scandals.

“The situation also shows the extreme uncertainty in a political environment that often prides itself on its stability, with three top leaders removed in just over a year,” Nguyen Khac Giang, an analyst at Singapore’s ISEAS-Yusof Ishak Institute, told The Associated Press (AP).

Hue’s dismissal comes days after his deputy, Pham Thai Ha, was arrested on April 21 on charges of abusing his position and power to appropriate state assets, according to state-run media outlet VN Express.

Early reports did not indicate that Hue was implicated in corruption, but said investigators had concluded that the parliamentary leader had “violated party regulations and that the violations had affected the reputation of the Party, the state and himself.”

The Vietnamese Communist Party accepted what it called Hue’s “voluntary resignation,” according to VN Express.

Hue, 67, had led Vietnam’s National Assembly for more than three years.

It is the fourth most powerful political position in Vietnam, after the roles of president, prime minister and Communist Party chief.

The political instability could threaten Vietnam’s economic ambitions, as it seeks to position itself as an alternative to China in the region.

Hue’s detention was part of an ongoing investigation into the Thuan An Group, the state-run Vietnam News Agency reported, citing Public Security Ministry spokesman Lieutenant General To An Xo.

The company’s chairman, Nguyen Duy Hung, and several others were detained in early April in a case that has already led to the unprecedented death sentence for real estate tycoon Truong My Lan in Vietnam’s biggest-ever fraud case.

Hue had previously been seen as a possible successor to Trong, the AP quoted the analyst as saying.

“His downfall will only intensify Vietnam’s succession crisis,” Giang said.

Vietnam’s leaders are due to hold a Communist Party congress in early 2026.

In the meantime, rivals are jockeying for position to succeed Trong, who won a third term as party chief in 2021, according to the AP.

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