The Party’s methods for leadership and ruling over local governments

ASSOC. PROF., DR. VU HOANG CONG
Institute of Political Science,
Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics

1. Introduction

Leadership and ruling over the State in general, and local authorities in particular, are among the various leadership roles of the Party at the local level. However, this is the most important leadership content because it signifies the Party’s ruling (in the sense that the Party, through its members holding state positions, utilizes state power to manage the local state apparatus), something the Party could not achieve while operating in secrecy. Through leading in building the government apparatus, directly holding, and operating the government apparatus, and exercising state power in localities, the Party has an additional effective and efficient method of leadership over the entire society.

2. Local government in Vietnam today

Over the past 40 years, local governments in Vietnam have been organized and operated in accordance with the Constitutions of 1980, 1992 and 2013. In general, they have many similarities, but also some differences over time.

The 1980 and 1992 Constitutions have a separate chapter regulating the people’s council and people’s committee, stipulating that people’s councils and people’s committees are established in all administrative units. Although it is not specifically stated which administrative levels are included in local governments, in reality it is understood that local governments include provincial, district, and commune levels.

Implementing the administrative reform policy of the 5th session of the 10th Central Committee, the 12th National Assembly issued Resolution No. 26/2008 dated November 15, 2008, on the pilot implementation for not organizing district and ward people’s councils. This resolution took effect from April 2009. Accordingly, throughout the country of Vietnam, there are 67 rural districts, 32 urban districts, 483 wards of 10 provinces and centrally run cities implementing this pilot program. Units participating in the pilot do not organize people’s councils, and only have people’s committees. Many people call this an inadequate government model.

After the pilot did not achieve the expected results, this policy was ended. Administrative units implementing the pilot would reorganize local governments according to the newly promulgated Law on Local Government.

Institutionalizing the policy of the 11th National Party Congress, the 2013 Constitution sets aside a separate chapter (Chapter IX) on Local Government and clearly states it in Article 11:

1. Local governments are organized in administrative units of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.

2. The local government level includes the people’s council and the People’s Committee organized in accordance with the characteristics of rural areas, urban areas, islands, and special administrative-economic units as prescribed by law.

To concretize this, the 13th National Assembly, 9th session, in 2015 passed the Law on Organization of Local Governments superseding the 2003 Law on the Organization of People’s Councils and People’s Committees with many new points.

The law stipulates that local governments are organized in all administrative units at three levels: province, district, and commune. In each administrative unit, local government includes a People’s Council and People’s Committee.

Regarding the People’s Councils, the Law stipulates that People’s Councils at provincial, district and commune levels have a number of representatives depending on the type of area (rural or urban), with each type divided into levels I, II and III. The People’s Council has an structure including the chairperson, vice chairperson, office of the People’s Council, and specialized committees. The provincial level includes 3 departments: legal, economic - financial, cultural - social affairs. In an urban area, there may be an urban committee; if in a mountainous and ethnic minority area, there may be an ethnic committee. The District People’s council includes 2 committees: legal, socio-economic affairs. If in a mountainous ethnic minority area, an ethnic committee is added, if in an urban area, an urban committee is added. The commune level also has two similar boards. The law clearly stipulates the powers and duties of the People’s Council and its Standing Committee.

Regarding the People’s Committee, the Law stipulates that it includes a chairperson, vice-chairperson, committee members, and specialized agencies under the committee. The number of specialized agencies in urban and rural areas is specified in Decrees by the Government. The law clearly stipulates the powers and duties of the People’s Committee and the chairperson of the People’s Committee.

Regarding the principles of organization and operation of local governments in general, the Law stipulates:

1. Compliance with the Constitution and laws, manage society by law; implement the principle of democratic centralism.

2. Modernity, transparency, serving the people, subject to people’s supervision.

3. The People’s Council works on a conference system and decides by majority.

4. The People’s Committee operates under the collective committee system combined with the responsibilities of the chairperson of the People’s Committee.

The law divides administrative units into two types: urban and rural.

As of 2024, based on the 3 local administrative levels, the country has 12,265 administrative units, including:

- 63 provincial-level administrative units, including 5 cities (2 special cities, 3 class I cities) and 58 provinces.

- 705 district-level administrative units, including 1 city within a centrally run city, 82 provincial cities; 53 provincial towns, 46 urban districts, 523 districts within provinces and centrally run cities.

- 10,597 commune-level administrative units, including 1,780 wards, 619 towns, and 8,198 communes.

Based on urban or rural classification, the whole country has:

- 2,626 urban administrative units, including 5 centrally run cities; 222 urban districts, towns, and provincial cities; 1,780 wards, 619 towns.

- 8,198 rural administrative units, including: 58 provinces, 523 districts, 8,198 communes

After the election of the National Assembly and People’s Councils at all levels in May 2016, all administrative units, whether urban or rural, organized People’s Councils and People’s Committees in accordance with the 2015 Law on Local Government.

At the requests of the cities of Hanoi, Da Nang, and Ho Chi Minh City, and with the consent of the Politburo, the 14th National Assembly (term 2016-2021) issued separate resolutions on specific mechanisms for each city, which addresses the issue of urban government organization. The Government issued a decree detailing the implementation of the above resolutions. Accordingly, from mid-2021, Hanoi has not organized People’s Councils in 175 wards of 12 districts and Son Tay town. From 2022, Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang did not organize People’s Councils in all districts and wards.

3. Content and methods of the Party’s leadership and ruling over local governments

Firstly, the content of the Party’s leadership and authority over local governments

The practice of leading and operating local governments from 1945 to the present shows that the Party’s leadership and ruling over local governments includes:

- Leading the election of People’s Councils and People’s Committees.

- Leading the organization, staffing, and payroll management of the People’s Council and People’s Committee.

- Leaders of the people’s council and people’s committee operate in accordance with the principles, functions, powers, and duties as prescribed by law.

In short, it is the leadership in construction and operation of local government.

Secondly, the Party’s leadership and ruling methods over local governments

The Party leads and rules local governments through leadership work and a system of leading and ruling entities. Leadership work includes the Party’s necessary activities aimed at building the government and managing government activities, including: ideological and propaganda work; organizational and staff work; inspection and supervision work; reward and discipline work.

The leading and ruling subjects are the agencies and individuals that implement the above tasks, including:

- The Party’s leading bodies (the Congress, the Central Committee, the Politburo, the Secretariat) in their role of proposing guidelines and policies; The National Assembly, the Government, and ministries in promulgating the Constitution, laws, strategies, and plans, create a political and legal framework that local governments throughout the country must comply with and implement.

- Party organizations, directly the local Party committees (provincial party committee, district party committee, commune party committee) in their comprehensive leadership role, primarily proposing policies and plans for socio-economic development, national security, and defense within the locality, and carrying out political and ideological work, staffing organization, inspection, supervision, etc., within the scope of the local Party committee.

Numerically, there are currently 63 provincial Party committees and city Party committees directly under the Central Government; 705 district Party committees, city Party committees, town Party committees, and district Party committees; 10,597 Party committees of communes, wards and towns. Almost all provincial and city Party secretaries are members of the Party Central Committee; All district-level secretaries are members of the provincial party executive committee; All commune-level secretaries are members of the district-level Party executive committee.

- Party Unions in the People’s Council, personnel department in the people’s committee (at the provincial level). Currently, 63 out of 63 provinces and centrally run cities have Party Unions in the People’s Council and Party-personnel department in the people’s committee.

- Organizations of the party base in each party agency and local government reaches tens of thousands of units throughout the country.

- Party members are nominated or introduced by the Party Committee to be elected and hold key positions in the People’s Council, People’s Committee and specialized agencies of the People’s Committee. Counting only the two positions of Chairperson of the People’s Council and Chairperson of the People’s Committee from the provincial to district and commune levels, the country has about 22,700 people. After Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang did not organize People’s Councils in districts and wards, and Hanoi City did not organize People’s Councils in 175 wards, this figure decreased by more than 200 people, down to about 22,500 people.

Including vice chairs of People’s Councils and People’s Committees at all levels, the figure is about 56,800 people. Including the heads of specialized agencies under the provincial and district People’s Committees and professional civil servants of the commune People’s Committees, the number of leaders and key civil servants in the local government apparatus at all levels throughout the country is about 147,000 people (21,000 people at provincial and district level, and 126,000 people at commune level). It is truly a large, direct leadership, and ruling force at the local level.

The above-mentioned tasks and subjects constitute the Party’s leadership and ruling methods over local governments.

4. Achievements in renovating the content and methods of the Party’s leadership and ruling over local governments

Nearly 40 years of implementing comprehensive renewal, including renovating the Party’s leadership methods for local governments, has achieved the following results:

Firstly, more clearly affirming and more fully institutionalizing the principle of direct, comprehensive, and absolute Party leadership over local governments.

The 1991 Platform approved by the 7th Congress and other documents on Party building in recent years have affirmed that the Party leads the government through the role of the party organizations (especially the role of the Party Committees) and through individual party members holding leadership positions in state and local agencies, specifically leadership positions of People’s Councils and People’s Committees, and specialized agencies of People’s Committees.

The Central Committee of each session has issued new, supplementary, and amended documents to more clearly demonstrate the principle of the Party’s comprehensive leadership role over the local political system. Accordingly, local state agencies must follow the general guidelines and policies of the National Party Congress, the Central Committee, the Politburo, and the Secretariat; comply with the Constitution, laws, resolutions, and legal documents issued by central state agencies, and at the same time shall follow the resolutions of the Party Congress at the same level.

In terms of staffing organization, the leaders and heads of local government agencies are all planned, recommended and appointed by Party organizations, directly by the executive committee and standing committee of the Party committee at the same level.

Secondly, more clearly affirming and fully institutionalizing the basic principles of the socialist rule-of-law state in the organization and operation of local governments

These principles include: government of the people, by the people, for the people; Organized and operated according to the principle of democratic centralism; State power is unified with the allocation, coordination and mutual control in the implementation of legislative, executive and judicial functions; Management according to and by law, combined with improving ethics and personal responsibility of civil servants.

- The Law on National Assembly and People’s Council Elections clearly stipulates the role of the National Assembly Standing Committee and local Party Committees in leading the People’s Council election, primarily by introducing qualified, capable, and prestigious candidates to the people, demonstrating the unity between the Party’s will and the people’s will, followed by leading the organizational work, ensuring the conditions for lawful, democratic and transparent elections in each locality.

- The National Assembly, the National Assembly Standing Committee, and the Government have repeatedly amended, supplemented, and issued many new legal documents regulating and guiding the organization and operations of People’s Councils and People’s Committees at all levels. Most recently, the Law on Local Government was passed by the 13th National Assembly in 2015. The legal system in all aspects of socio-economic life, national defense, security, environment, natural resources, especially land, was supplemented, amended in accordance with the country’s development practices, creating a legal framework for the unified state management of People’s Committees at all levels.

- Since the 11th National Party Congress, the issue of power control has been officially raised by the Party. Regarding the power of local governments, control is exercised first of all through the role, functions, and powers of the People’s Council over the People’s Committee and other local judicial agencies according to law; at the same time, through the mechanism of inspection and settlement of complaints and denunciations of superior state agencies; through the mechanism of inspection and settlement of complaints and denunciations of superior party committees against party organizations in government agencies.

From the term of the 12th National Party Congress to now, through regulations, especially regulations on personnel organization, through strengthening the inspection work of the Party, of the State, many party organizations, many people holding leadership positions in local government agencies, including chairs of People’s Councils and People’s Committees, have been disciplined by the party, prosecuted and tried according to the law.

Thirdly, more clearly affirming and concretely institutionalizing the role of the Fatherland Front and socio-political organizations participating in building local governments

The 1991 and 2011 Platforms clearly stated that the Vietnam Fatherland Front, Trade Unions, Youth Unions, Women’s Unions, Farmers’ Unions, and Veterans’ Associations are organizations within the political system in Vietnam. The 2013 Constitution, the Law on Elections of the National Assembly and Local People’s Councils, the Front Law, the Trade Union Law, the Youth Law and the charters of socio-political organizations stipulate the powers and responsibilities as follows:

- Nominating representatives of organizations standing for election to the local people’s councils.

- Supporting and coordinating with the government in implementing the State’s guidelines and policies in the locality.

- Exercising the function of social supervision and criticism of local governments’ socio-economic development policies and measures, and supervising leaders of government agencies and local civil servants.

Fourthly, strengthening the Party’s leadership over the press and media system, and promoting the role of the press and media in supervising the activities of local government agencies and civil servants.

Not only the local press and media placed under the direct leadership of local party committees (provincial and district newspapers, radio, and television), but also press and media of party agencies, ministries, and branches at the central level reflect and supervise the activities of local government agencies, the qualifications, qualities, and activities of leaders of government agencies and local civil servants. In fact, many corruption and negativity cases committed by officials and civil servants in government agencies, including provincial leaders, have been exposed by the press, then investigated, prosecuted, and tried by the competent authorities.

Fifthly, affirming and institutionalizing the role of local people in building the government, supervising officials, and exercising the right to complain and denounce.

The 3rd Central Committee, term VIII (1997), first addressed the building and implementation of regulations on democracy at the grassroots level. Subsequently, on February 18, 1998, the Politburo issued Directive No. 30-CT/TW on building and implementing regulations on grassroots democracy, and the Government issued a Decree on implementing grassroots democracy. Later, the National Assembly Standing Committee issued Ordinance No. 34 of 2007 implementing democracy in communes, wards, and towns. In 2022, the National Assembly passed the Law on Implementing Grassroots Democracy, which marks an important milestone in expanding and developing democracy in our country, making an important contribution to building local governments in general, and grassroots governments in particular, increasingly demonstrating the nature of government of the people, by the people, for the people.

According to the Party’s guidelines, the National Assembly issued the Ordinance on Complaints and Denunciations in 1991, and amended and supplemented it into the Law on Complaints and Denunciations in 1998, and currently, the Law on Complaints in 2021 and the Law on Denunciations in 2018. These laws create a legal framework for people to exercise their civil rights and for local state agencies to fulfill their obligations in response to people’s complaints and denunciations.

Sixthly, leading the implementation of state administrative reform, including reform of the organizational structure, staffing, and administrative procedures of local government agencies.

Over the past 40 years, under the Party’s leadership, administrative reform of the State in general, and of local governments in particular has made important achievements. Many provinces and cities have made great progress, thereby making an important contribution to attracting domestic and foreign investment, leading to strong economic and social development at the local level. These achievements have also helped improve their rankings in provincial governance indexes. In the context of Industrial Revolution No. 4, digital transformation is vigorously taking place in all aspects (digital society, digital economy), local governments are making efforts to implement the national digital transformation goals.

5. The limitations and weaknesses of local governments, and causes from the Party’s leadership and ruling methods

After nearly 40 years of renovation, alongside many localities that have developed comprehensively or excelled in certain aspects, there are also many localities that have not developed commensurate with their potential and the expectations of the Party and people, including the aspect of building the government, and performing the tasks of the government. These manifestations are detailed as follows:

- Governments in many localities still have limitations and weaknesses in managing socio-economic development, order, and security, do not know how to exploit local potential and advantages, or exploit resources in localities unsustainably. Chasing economic growth alone leads to inadequate attention to planning and implementing land use plans, protecting water resources, and forest resources, increasing sources of environmental pollution and affecting the quality of life of local people.

- Administrative reform has not achieved its goals. The apparatus and staff are not streamlined, effectiveness and efficiency are low, and administrative procedures are still cumbersome, affecting people and businesses, thereby undermining the attraction of domestic and foreign investment.

- The principle of democratic centralism is often superficial in many places, with bureaucratic practices and violations of people’s democratic rights sometimes severe, leading to reactions from subordinates and the public against the government, potentially socio-political hot spots locally.

- Corruption and negativity occur in many places, sometimes severely, resulting in many officials and civil servants at all levels, even the chair of the People’s Councils and the Chairman of the People’s Committees, being subject to party discipline, prosecution, and trial before the law.

These shortcomings and limitations have primarily stemmed from the local political system:

- A segment of local officials and civil servants, including key provincial government leaders, lack competence, fail to cultivate and train themselves, and are negatively influenced by the market economy, leading to a decline in political ideology, ethics, lifestyle, and even legal violations. The most significant shortcomings are violations of the principle of democratic centralism in leadership, or working regulations by party committees, and violations of the law in state management, resulting in illicit enrichment.

- Grassroots party organizations (grassroots party committees, grassroots party cells) in some local government agencies, including those within the People’s Councils and People’s Committees, are weak, avoiding confrontation, not daring to fight, and inadequately supervising those with positions and authority, especially the heads of government agencies.

- Local party committees (provincial party committees, district party committees, commune party committees) sometimes and in some places ignore their leadership functions and tasks over the government at the same level, especially regarding the People’s Committee. Internal leadership is often not united, with conflicts even occurring between the Party secretary and the chairperson of the People’s Committee. Ideological and propaganda work, staff organization work, inspection and supervision work, and commendation and disciplinary work by local party committees towards government agencies at the same level as well as party committees and lower-level governments still not lack effectiveness and efficiency.

- The Fatherland Front, socio-political organizations, and local press and media systems fail to effectively play their role of social supervision and criticism towards party committees and authorities at the same level.

However, the weaknesses of local governments also stems from the roles and responsibilities of the central political system:

- The National Assembly, the National Assembly Standing Committee, the Government, the Prime Minister, and ministries promulgate legal documents, policies, and plans that lack consistency and specificity, which cause difficulties at the local levels when implementing them. Government and ministerial inspections have not promptly detected and corrected mistakes and shortcomings of lower-level authorities from the outset. Regimes and policies for local officials and civil servants, especially low salaries, increase incidents of corruption and negative behavior among officials and civil servants.

- Some Party guidelines, policies and regulations have not been promptly amended and supplemented to align with reality; Some pilot policies have not been implemented synchronously and thoroughly, or lack theoretical and practical basis, making it difficult to put them into practice (for example, the pilot policy of not organizing People’s Councils at district and ward levels; the pilot consolidating certain party and government agencies and positions with similar functions and tasks).

- Supervision and inspection of the Central Committee, the Politburo, and central party committees over local party committees in leadership work, especially in personnel organization work for the government in certain localities has not been regularly and closely monitored. As a result, degenerate and incompetent officials take advantage of this to be appointed to take key leadership positions in localities, not only weakening the apparatus but also reducing people’s trust in the local political system.

6. Continuing to renovate the Party’s leadership and ruling methods with local governments in the new context

In terms of perspective, it is necessary to affirm that the content and method of leadership developed over nearly 40 years of renovation are correct. In terms of direction, it is necessary to continue promoting the 6 achievements while overcoming the limitations and weaknesses of the governments in many localities in recent times. Regarding the focus, it is necessary to emphasize the implementation of measures to overcome the causes of the above limitations and weaknesses. Specifically:

First of all, emphasize the importance of leadership in government building

Leadership in government building includes leading and directing theoretical research, summarizing practice, and proposing new models and new institutions for local government. The 2015 Law on Local Government Organization is a new step forward, but currently there are still some points that are unclear, such as the model of special administrative - economic units, and the design of the specific political system and authority model for urban and rural areas, which need to be concretely implemented through legislation.

Secondly, in leading government activities, it is necessary to pay more attention to staff work, and inspection and supervision work, because these two tasks are directly related to the operating quality, effectiveness, and efficiency of local government agencies.

Good leadership in personnel organization is a correct and substantive implementation of the Party’s regulations in planning, training, cultivating and appointing officials to government positions, especially the positions of chairperson, vice-chairperson of people’s committees at all levels, and heads of specialized agencies of provincial and district People’s Committees.

Good leadership in inspection and supervision is to regularly encourage correct thoughts and behaviors, remind and correct wrong thoughts and actions from the beginning, especially those of the heads of agencies, to prevent them from becoming worse and violating what is not permitted for cadres and Party members, and even violating the law.

Leaders performing well set a good example. This requires superiors to set a good example for their subordinates - the central level sets an good example for the provincial level, the provincial level sets a good example for the district level, and the district level sets a good example for the commune level. Once the heads of lower-level governments see that the heads of higher-level governments are clean and free from negative corruption, they are likely to follow suit.

Thirdly, fully implementing the responsibilities of local leaders and authorities. Regarding the Party, it is necessary to pay more attention to the roles and responsibilities of local party committees from provincial to district and commune levels , especially the standing committees and standing members of provincial and centrally run city party committees because these are the collectives including the highest leadership positions of the party committee and local government. If the standing members of the provincial and municipal Party committees are capable, united, and clean, the corresponding and lower-level governments will surely comply with the law, and corruption, negativity, and violations will be minimized.

Greater emphasis should be placed on role of the inspection committees of Party committees at all levels, particularly at the provincial and municipal levels, in supervising and inspecting Party organizations and Party members. Currently, most provinces have established anti-corruption and anti-negativity steering committees, with the standing members and advisors being from the provincial and municipal Party committees’ internal affairs departments. These steering committees need to operate more substantively and regularly.

Regarding local government agencies, it is necessary to further enhance the role of the People’s Councils at the provincial, district and commune levels, specifically the role of the chairperson, the vice-chairperson, and specialized committees of the People’s Councils. Their primary responsibility is monitoring and deciding whether or not to approve policies and measures proposed by the People’s Committee. The model where the Party secretary simultaneously serves as the chairperson of the People’s Council in areas with People’s Councils should be affirmed, as it is one of the measures to enhance the power and supervisory role of local Party committees and the people over the People’s Committees and their leaders. For districts and wards without People’s Councils, the supervisory functions, and tasks of this agency and the People’s Committee should be transferred to superiors in a reasonable and feasible manner.

Fourthly, fully implementing the responsibilities of leading entities at the central level, starting with the important role of the Central Committee in promulgating, amending, and supplementing relevant guidelines and policies related to the construction and operation of local government apparatus.

Next is the role of the Politburo and the Secretariat in personnel work, inspection, supervision, and discipline because these are the tasks that directly affect the quality of the political leadership,, especially at the provincial level. This includes making wise and objective decisions in the transfer and rotation of officials from the central to local levels, to hold leadership positions such as chair of the People’s Council, and chair of the People’s Committee of provinces and cities; in approving planning, promoting and appointing provincial government leaders from local sources.

To help the Politburo and the Secretariat in performing these tasks, it is necessary to enhance the role of central party committees, especially the Central Inspection Committee, Central Organizing Committee, and Central Internal Affairs Committee.

In order for local governments to be organized and operate well, it is necessary to have complete, clear, and highly feasible legal documents. Therefore, it is necessary to further promote the powers of the National Assembly, the National Assembly Standing Committee, the Government, and Government agencies in formulating and promulgating legal documents.

Practice experience shows the particularly important role of the Prime Minister in inspecting, directing, and setting an example for the heads of People’s Committees of provinces and centrally run cities. The Prime Minister needs to be more forceful in dealing with individual heads of People’s Committees who do not meet work requirements, are late, lack capacity in organizing and operating People’s Committees, and in leading and directing specialized agencies of the committee to complete their assigned functions and tasks.

Heads of ministries and ministerial-level agencies need to further promote their leadership role, directing the work of guidance, inspection, and specialized examination of provincial governments in the implementation of policies, laws, programs, and plans proposed by the Government. In particular, the role of the Government Inspectorate should be promoted in inspecting provincial governments.

Central press management and directive agencies need to guide and encourage the press and media system from the central to the local level to actively participate in propagating and reflecting exemplary and innovative models in organizing and operating local government apparatus, while promptly criticizing emerging wrongdoings and negative phenomena. This participation will contribute to social supervision and criticism of local governments.

The Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, the Vietnam General Confederation of Labor, and other central socio-political organizations need to guide lower-level organizations, especially at the provincial and district levels, to promote their role as representatives of all levels. People’s groups and social circles introduce worthy candidates to run for election to the People’s Council at the same level, carry out social supervision and criticism of the local government at their level, thereby contributing to building local government in general.

If the above synchronous measures are implemented well, local governments throughout the country will certainly experience many innovations and advancements, meeting the expectations of the people and the effort of the entire Party in building and leading the country.

_________________

Received: March 10, 2024; Revised: March 16, 2024; Approved for publication: March 22, 2024.