A rather surprising piece of information is that in the latest draft Decree (being reviewed by the Ministry of Justice), the Ministry of Public Security has dropped the proposal to reduce the fine for violations of alcohol concentration to the minimum level.
It is surprising because previously, in the draft Decree on handling administrative violations of traffic order and safety (TTATGT) in the field of road traffic; deducting points and restoring previous driving license points, the Drafting Committee proposed to reduce the fine to from 800,000 VND to 1 million VND (instead of 6-8 million VND) for violations of alcohol concentration not exceeding 50mg/100ml of blood, or not exceeding 0.25mg/1 liter of breath.
According to Major General Nguyen Van Mung - Deputy Director of the Traffic Police Department (C08), the Ministry of Public Security's withdrawal of the previous proposal and keeping the penalty level for alcohol concentration as in Decree 100 is to absorb the opinions of the people and scientists.
In terms of the law drafting process, proposing or withdrawing a proposal on a policy in a draft law that has a major impact on people's lives after listening to comments and feedback from people, experts, scientists, etc. is normal and not unusual.
Furthermore, in reality, both the Ministry of Public Security's proposals to lower and maintain alcohol-related penalties have been and are being contested.
Those in favor of lowering the fine argue that the current fine of VND6-8 million is quite high, especially for low-income earners.
Reducing the fine to 800,000 - 1 million VND helps reduce financial pressure on violators, making it easier for them to accept and pay the fine, reducing resistance and complaints, making it easier for violators to accept and comply.
The argument in favor of keeping it the same is that reducing the fine will negatively impact people's awareness of obeying traffic laws. Because the current fine for alcohol concentration is considered to have a high deterrent effect. Reducing the fine may reduce the deterrent effect, making people more negligent in complying with regulations on alcohol concentration when driving.
The Law on Road Traffic Safety recently passed by the National Assembly prohibits drivers from participating in road traffic with alcohol in their blood or breath (alcohol concentration is 0).
The purpose, as viewed by the Ministry of Public Security, is for drivers of vehicles with alcohol levels to gradually form the habit and culture of "If you drink alcohol, do not drive".
“Driving” after “drinking alcohol”, regardless of whether the concentration is high or low, is still an intentional violation of the law. Therefore, keeping the current penalty level will maintain a high deterrent effect and help maintain people’s awareness of obeying traffic laws!
