Putting people's interests first
In his directing speech, regarding the 2-level local government system, General Secretary and President To Lam stated clearly that the Central Government does not raise the issue of rearranging and adjusting the administrative boundaries of communes, because basically the entire system is operating stably and effectively. Provinces and cities that find it truly necessary to adjust, based on the Party's guidelines, the State's laws, planning, management practices and the legitimate aspirations of the people, should propose to competent authorities to decide. The proposed plan to adjust administrative boundaries must be scientific, cautious, feasible, create consensus, and serve the socio-economic development goals of the locality and serve the people better. Resolutely eliminate the ideology of "pleasing officials, suffering the people". The Standing Committee and the Executive Committee of the Provincial and City Party Committees must be responsible for that proposal.
The message "resolutely eliminate the ideology of "pleasing officials, suffering the people"" of General Secretary and President To Lam shows the requirement to shift from "management" thinking to "service" thinking, from evaluating the effectiveness of the apparatus by process to evaluating by results and the level of satisfaction of the people. This is not only an requirement for the arrangement of administrative units, but also a consistent principle in building a socialist rule-of-law state, building a modern, constructive and serving administration.
Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Quoc Ly - former Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh National Academy of Politics - said that the directing message of the General Secretary and President is a reminder that the arrangement of administrative units and the arrangement of the apparatus must put the highest measure of the people's interests first, avoiding the situation of rearranging to make it easier to manage and convenient for officials, but people face more difficulties in resolving administrative procedures, wasting time and increasing costs for people and businesses.
Taking people's satisfaction as a measure
According to Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Quoc Ly, the request of General Secretary and President To Lam to resolutely eliminate the ideology of "pleasing officials, suffering the people" is a strong message about the public service ethics of the contingent of officials. At the same time, it sets out the requirement to innovate management thinking in the direction of putting the people at the center, taking the level of people's satisfaction as a measure of the quality of government activities. This is also a strong reminder of the nature of State power: Power is granted to serve the people.
The "message" is to resolutely eliminate the ideology of "pleasing officials, making people suffer" because it goes beyond the scope of administrative unit arrangement work. That is a principled requirement for the entire national administration: From policy making, procedural reform, organizational structure to resource allocation, all policies must take the interests of the People as the starting point and ultimate goal. When people truly become the center of governance, all policies can create social consensus, strengthen trust and transform into a driving force for sustainable development" - Assoc. Prof. Dr. Le Quoc Ly emphasized.
Mr. Nguyen Tuc - Chairman of the Advisory Council on Culture and Society (Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front) - said that in his speech related to the arrangement of administrative units by the General Secretary and President To Lam, it was clearly shown that the adjustment of boundaries cannot be viewed simply from the perspective of administrative technology or organizational structure. Each decision must be considered in the overall development plan, management requirements and long-term interests of the community. The requirement to be based on "the legitimate aspirations of the people" has affirmed the principle that all policies must put people at the center.
This is also a consistent inheritance of the ideology of "people as the root", and at the same time reflects the requirement to innovate the Party's leadership and ruling methods in the new development stage. Therefore, the message of the General Secretary and President is more profound than a requirement for adjusting administrative boundaries. That is to establish a principle in building and implementing policies, all decisions must be scrutinized by the interests of the People" - Mr. Nguyen Tuc said. That is also the spirit of the Resolution of the 14th Party Congress that has determined: All guidelines and policies of the Party and State must truly originate from the needs, aspirations, legitimate and lawful rights and interests of the People.
