To Lam who born 10 July 1957 is a Vietnamese politician and former police officer who has served as general secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV) since August 2024 and the 13th president of Vietnam from May 2024 to October 2024.
A career officer in the People’s Public Security Forces for over 40 years, Lam previously served as Minister of Public Security from 2016 until his election to the presidency in 2024.
Born in Hung Yen province, To Lam became a member of the CPV on 22 August 1981. A graduate of the Central Police School and the Vietnam People’s Security Academy, his entire career has been in the police forces.
To Lam’s Career
He holds the rank of four-star General in the Vietnam People’s Public Security. He previously served as Head of the Central Highlands Steering Committee, Deputy Minister of Public Security, and Director-General of the MPS First General Department of Security.
He has been a Member of the CPV Central Committee since 2011, and a Member of the CPV Politburo since 2016.
Lam played a role in the late General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong’s anti-corruption campaign, which implicated numerous senior officials to a degree unprecedented in Vietnamese political history.
Following Trong’s death in July 2024, Lam currently heads the Central Steering Committee on Anti-corruption and the Central Military Commission.
Lam is alleged to have led a campaign against dissidents, suppressed civil society organizations, tightened internet censorship, and implicated in various controversies.
On 18 May 2024, he was nominated by the CPV Central Committee to become Vietnam’s 13th president, succeeding Vo Van Thuong, who resigned in March 2024 due to the anti-corruption campaign.
The Rise of To Lam
The National Assembly relieved To Lam of his ministerial post prior to the presidential election, and his protege Luong Tam Quang was appointed public security minister in June 2024.
On 3 August 2024, following the death of Nguyen Phu Trong, To Lam was elected CPV General Secretary and Secretary of the Central Military Commission by the 13th Central Committee, making him Vietnam’s current paramount leader.