Morning news 20-5: National Assembly discusses amending the Penal Code, proposes to abolish the death penalty for 8 crimes

National Assembly - Photo 1.

Delegates attending the 9th session of the 15th National Assembly - Photo: quochoi.vn

National Assembly discusses amending the Penal Code, proposing to abolish the death penalty for 8 crimes

According to the meeting agenda, this morning, May 20, the National Assembly will listen to the Minister of Public Security, authorized by the Prime Minister, present a report and listen to the review report of the draft Penal Code (amended).

After that, the National Assembly will listen to the Chief Justice of the Supreme People's Procuracy present a report and hear a report examining the draft Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Criminal Procedure Code.

The National Assembly also heard a draft law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Law on Credit Institutions. These three contents will be discussed by the National Assembly in the afternoon of the same day.

Notably, in the draft revised Penal Code, the Government proposed to add life imprisonment without parole as the main penalty. It is expected to abolish the death penalty and replace it with life imprisonment without parole (still ensuring the isolation of criminals from social life) for 8/18 crimes with the death penalty in the current Penal Code.

Specifically: crimes of activities aimed at overthrowing the people's government; crimes of espionage; crimes of sabotaging Vietnam's material and technical facilities; crimes of producing and trading in counterfeit medicines and preventive medicines; crimes of illegally transporting narcotics; crimes of embezzlement of property; crimes of accepting bribes; crimes of undermining peace and waging aggressive wars.

The Government also proposed to increase the prison sentence and fines for some crimes to ensure deterrence and improve the effectiveness of the fight against crimes such as environmental crimes, counterfeit goods, food safety, drugs, etc.

Vietnam is about to have the richest person with assets of nearly 10 billion USD

At the end of the trading session on May 19, Vingroup's VIC shares increased to the ceiling price (7%), bringing the market price to VND85,600/unit. VIC shares continued to increase strongly, pushing the net worth of Mr. Pham Nhat Vuong - Vingroup's chairman - closer to the 10 billion USD mark.

Specifically, according to Forbes data , Mr. Vuong's net worth increased by 456 million USD after one session and is now at 9.7 billion USD. Mr. Vuong is currently the 299th richest person in the world. This is also the first time a Vietnamese businessman has achieved this amount of wealth and ranking position.

It is known that Mr. Pham Nhat Vuong directly owns 691.3 million VIC shares and indirectly holds them through private companies such as Xanh SM, VMI or Vietnam Investment Group. He also holds a large amount of VinFast shares through private companies.

Resident deposits exceed corporate deposits, reaching 7.3 million billion VND

National Assembly - Photo 2.

People's deposits in banks reached 7.3 million billion VND - Photo: HOANG GIAM

The latest statistics on deposits in the banking system were announced by the State Bank on May 19. Accordingly, as of the end of February, the total amount of savings deposits of residents in the banking system reached 7,366 trillion VND, an increase of 4.26% compared to the end of 2024. The amount of deposits of residents has continuously increased, with each month being higher than the previous month for over 2 years.

On the contrary, businesses and economic organizations withdrew some money. By the end of February, the amount of savings deposits of this group was 7,362 trillion VND, down nearly 4%, equivalent to 305,000 billion VND compared to the end of 2024.

According to economic experts, the above trend is understandable because people consider depositing money in banks to be beneficial and safe. As for businesses and economic organizations, the decrease in savings deposits in banks shows that production and business activities are improving. Money is put into circulation through investment, factory expansion, purchasing raw materials, importing goods, etc.

Regarding deposit interest rates, state-owned banks have remained stable at a low level over the past two years. The highest interest rate is 4.8%/year applied for terms of 24 months or more, while Vietcombank pays a lower rate of 4.7%/year. For short terms of 1-2 months, Agribank listed the highest rate in the Big4 group at 2.1%/year, while the remaining three banks are at 1.6%/year.

At private commercial banks, the 12-month term interest rate is commonly 5-5.2%/year. For large sums of money, depending on the bank, the interest rate paid ranges from 5.7-9.5%/year.

Ho Chi Minh City requires ensuring electricity supply for economic development

Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee believes that in 2025, the city's economy will enter a new stage of development. Therefore, it is forecasted that the city's load demand will grow by more than 10% for the whole year.

Faced with this situation, the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee assigned departments, branches, sectors, People's Committees of districts and Thu Duc City to closely coordinate with Ho Chi Minh City Power Corporation, Southern Power Project Management Board, Hiep Phuoc Power Company Limited and investors of power projects to speed up the implementation of power projects in the area.

The Department of Industry and Trade shall preside over and coordinate with relevant departments and branches to strengthen inspection and supervision of the progress of construction, completion, and operation of the Hiep Phuoc LNG gas power plant project, phase 1 (1,200 MW), phase 2 (1,500 MW) and connection lines, and release the plant's capacity according to the schedule specified in the VIII Power Plan.

At the same time, remove difficulties and obstacles in investment and construction of power projects in the city.

The City Power Corporation must proactively monitor the situation closely, continuously update the actual developments of the electricity load, operating conditions of the power system and the electricity market, ensure operation and plan to provide safe, stable and reliable electricity for the Ho Chi Minh City power system.

COVID-19 cases in Vietnam increase slightly, Ministry of Health issues recommendations

According to the Ministry of Health, the number of COVID-19 cases in the world has been increasing recently, but Vietnam has not recorded any concentrated outbreaks. However, there has been a slight increase in the past 3 weeks, with an average of 20 cases per week. COVID-19 is also currently circulating in Vietnam.

With the high demand for people to travel and socialize, it is possible that the number of cases in our country will increase in the coming time. However, severe cases caused by variants of the COVID-19 virus may not increase.

The Ministry of Health has proactively strengthened supervision and closely monitored the COVID-19 situation, stepped up the implementation of epidemic prevention and control measures at medical facilities and in the community; was ready to admit, provide emergency care, and effectively treat infected cases, especially those in high-risk groups (pregnant women, people with underlying diseases, the elderly, etc.), and prevented any deaths.

The Ministry of Health also recommends that people should not be too worried or panic. People need to proactively implement epidemic prevention measures such as wearing masks when going to medical facilities, crowded places or on public transport; limiting gatherings in crowded places (if not necessary); washing hands regularly with soap or antiseptic solution; covering mouth and nose when coughing or sneezing; not spitting indiscriminately.

Increase physical activity, physical training and proper nutrition to improve physical condition; when having symptoms of cough, fever, shortness of breath, go to a medical facility for timely examination and consultation; people returning from epidemic countries need to proactively monitor their health and prevent spreading to relatives and the community.

National Assembly - Photo 3.