Draft Construction Law Needs to Avoid Contradictions

Source: Pano feed

At the recent workshop on draft Law on Construction (amended) in Hanoi, many experts pointed out that the draft law needs to remove, change and supplement its contents to be consistent with provisions specified in other laws like the Law on Investment, the Law on Tender and the Land Law in order to formulate a strong, smooth legal framework, ensure transparency and avoid inconsistency and overlapping in prevailing laws.


Construction Minister Trinh Dinh Dung said this is the right time to draft and complete the amended Law on Construction. The current Law on Construction was adopted by the National Assembly on November 26, 2003 and took effect on July 1, 2004. To enforce this law, the Government has issued 27 decrees and six decisions to guide implementation.


After more than eight years, the law has revealed many shortcomings and inadequacies relating to establishment and management of construction planning, construction investment management, and construction activities.


Existing shortcomings not only affect operations of management authorities but also affect construction investment activities, especially investment attraction.


Mr Tran Ngoc Hung, President of the Vietnam Construction Association, said that the main reasons to this reality are inconsistent legal documents on construction investment and improper importance attached to State management. The lax management of State-funded construction projects results in unguaranteed quality, prolonged progress and low efficiency of investment projects.


As construction investment management is performed by many organs. Therefore, the revised law must carefully take into consideration the regulatory contents to ensure integrity and consistency.


The amended Law on Tender now focuses on procurement contents to create the unity of legal documents on tender and procurement. This new law is expected to be passed by the National Assembly soon. Earlier, the draft Law on Tender (amended) was adopted by the Government on September 13, 2012. This law erased contents concerning selection of contractors and tender contracts in construction activities provided in the Construction Law.


The business community also proposed the abolition of contents concerning selection of contractors and tender contracts in construction activities specified by the Construction Law because contractors confront many difficulties when they must comply with the Law on Tender and the Law on Construction, which do not have the same provisions.


Mr Nguyen Xuan Dao, Deputy Director of the Department of Public Procurement under the Ministry of Planning and Investment, said the Ministry of Planning and Investment advocated the abolition of contents related to selection of contractors and tender contracts in the amended Law on Construction. He pointed out that the draft Law on Construction (amended) should remove the entire Chapter 8, remove the phrase “arrange tenders and procurements for self-interest purposes” in the Clause 7, Article 12 because this act is prohibited in the Law on Tender, get rid of Clauses 28, 29, 30 and 31 of Article 3 as the Law on Tender clearly specifies contractors, general contractors, subcontractors in construction in the Clause 5, Article 120 of the draft law.


The overlapping and contradiction between the Law on Construction and other laws cause a lot of difficulties in enforcement. Mr Duong Van Can, General Secretary of the Vietnam Construction Contractors Association, said removing inadequacies of the Law, including the selection of construction contractors and contracts, is particularly important. It is vital to rebuild the legal system in general and the construction law system in particular to create a strong, close legal corridor for all subjected entities.


Dinh Thanh




Đăng ký: VietNam News