1. During more than 94 years of leading the Revolution, our Party has constantly researched, developed, supplemented, and perfected its leadership methods, and improved its leadership and governing capacity. This is the key factor ensuring that the Party is always clean and strong, leading the revolutionary boat through all rapids, achieving one victory after another. The country is facing a new historical moment, a new era, an era of national growth, and the requirement to strongly innovate its leadership methods, improve its leadership and governing capacity to continue moving forward is urgent.
The concept of “ruling party” was first raised by V.I. Lenin in 1922. From 1925-1927, in the book “The Revolutionary Path”, President Ho Chi Minh raised the issue of the ruling party. He considered the issue of the Communist Party of Vietnam leading the State and society as the principle demonstrating the ruling role of the Party; the Party holds that great responsibility because the purpose of the Party is nothing other than “leading the working masses as a class to fight to eliminate capitalist imperialism, to realize a communist society” [1], “apart from the interests of the nation and the Fatherland, the Party has no other interests” [2], “The Party is not an organization to make officials rich. It must fulfill the task of liberating the nation, making the Fatherland rich and strong, and the people happy” [3].
In his Testament, President Ho Chi Minh wrote: “Our Party is a ruling Party” [4]. Regarding leadership, in his work “Reforming the way of working”, President Ho Chi Minh devoted a section to this issue. He asked the question: “What is true leadership?” [5] and answered: “True leadership is: 1) Must decide all issues correctly…”. 2) Must organize implementation correctly…”. 3) Must organize control…”[6]; and to do all 3 things correctly, according to him, we must rely on the people.
Based on the viewpoints of Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh's thought, the 7th National Congress of the Party for the first time mentioned "innovation in the content and methods of Party leadership" [7], emphasizing the need to "specify the relationship and working style between the Party and the State and people's organizations at all levels, first of all at the Central level" [8].
The 1991 Platform for National Construction in the Transitional Period to Socialism defines the Party's leadership method as follows: "The Party leads society through its platform, strategies, policy orientations and working guidelines; through propaganda, persuasion, mobilization, inspection and exemplary actions of Party members. The Party introduces outstanding Party members with sufficient capacity and qualities to work in government leadership agencies and organizations. The Party does not replace the work of other organizations in the political system" [9]; "The Party leads the political system and is at the same time a part of that system. The Party is closely connected to the people, subject to the people's supervision, and operates within the framework of the Constitution and the law" [10].
The mid-term national conference of delegates of the 7th tenure affirmed that “The Party leads according to the principles of democratic centralism, collective leadership, and individual responsibility; leads through the Party organization, not just through individual Party members; leads through collective decisions and by monitoring, giving opinions, directing, inspecting implementation, encouraging good aspects, and correcting deviations, in order to strongly promote the role and effectiveness of the State, not to govern on behalf of the State” [11].
The 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th and 12th National Congresses all continued to supplement and develop the viewpoint on the Party's leadership method; the 13th National Congress emphasized "Continuing to strongly innovate the Party's leadership method in new conditions" [12]. Based on the summary of 15 years of implementing Resolution No. 15-NQ/TW of the 10th Party Central Committee, the 6th Central Conference of the 13th tenure issued Resolution No. 28-NQ/TW dated November 17, 2022 on continuing to innovate the Party's leadership and governance methods over the political system in the new period.
The Party's leadership and ruling role over the State and society is affirmed in the Constitutions of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam; the mechanism of "Party leadership, State management, people as masters" was also soon affirmed and implemented by strict regulations in the Party Charter, the Constitution and legal provisions, as well as the regulations and rules of other organizations in the political system and mass organizations.
Under the leadership of the Party with democratic and scientific methods and ways of governing, constantly innovated to suit the requirements and tasks of each period, the Vietnamese revolutionary cause in general and the cause of innovation in particular have made many miracles and achieved great successes. From a country that had no name on the world map and was heavily devastated by war, Vietnam has risen to become a symbol of peace, stability, hospitality, and a destination for international investors and tourists. From a backward economy, Vietnam has risen to be among the Top 40 leading economies, with a trade scale in the Top 20 countries in the world, an important link in 16 FTAs connecting with 60 key economies in the region and globally.
From a besieged and isolated country, Vietnam has established diplomatic relations with 193 United Nations member states, has strategic partnerships and comprehensive partnerships with 30 countries, including all major countries, and is an active member of over 70 regional and international organizations. Taking the happiness and prosperity of the people as its goal, Vietnam is considered by the United Nations and international friends as a success story, a bright spot in hunger eradication and poverty reduction, and constantly improving the material and spiritual life of the people.
At the same time, a stable political institution has been formed with the mechanism of "Party leadership, State management, people mastery". The Party's organizational system has been improved many times, gradually shaped, and is continuing to be innovated and rearranged. The political system, the core of which is the socialist rule of law State of the people, by the people and for the people, has been built and perfected, affirming its role in managing and operating all activities of social life.
The Vietnam Fatherland Front is truly an organization that represents and protects the legitimate and legal rights and interests of the people; gathers and promotes the strength of great national unity, practices democracy, strengthens social consensus; supervises and provides social criticism; participates in building the Party and the State. Socio-political organizations represent the legitimate and legal rights and interests of all classes and strata of people; unites, gathers, propagates, and mobilizes people to actively implement the Party's policies and guidelines. That institution has increasingly affirmed its suitability and superiority, and is trusted and supported by the vast majority of cadres, party members, and people of all strata, and highly appreciated by international friends.
However, the innovation of the Party's leadership method still has many shortcomings and limitations. There are still many documents issued, some of which are general, scattered, overlapping, and slow to be supplemented, revised, and replaced. Some major policies and orientations of the Party have not been institutionalized promptly and fully, or have been institutionalized but their feasibility is not high.
The overall model of the political system is not yet complete; the functions, tasks, powers, and working relationships of organizations, individuals, and leaders are unclear; decentralization and delegation of power are not strong. The organizational model of the Party and the political system still has shortcomings, making it difficult to distinguish the boundary between leadership and management, easily leading to excuses, replacing or loosening the leadership role of the Party. Administrative reform, innovation of working style and manners within the Party are still slow; meetings are still frequent.
2. To continue to strongly innovate leadership methods, improve leadership capacity, governing capacity, ensure that the Party is the great helmsman, leading our nation forward strongly; some key tasks are:
Firstly, unify awareness and strictly implement the Party's leadership and governance methods, absolutely do not allow excuses, replace or loosen the Party's leadership. The Party leads through the political system of which the Party is the core; leads through ideology, guidelines, policies and exemplary vanguard, regular self-criticism and criticism of cadres and Party members; by institutionalizing the Party's guidelines, guidelines and policies into State laws; by mobilizing and persuading the people to implement the Party's guidelines and policies, introducing outstanding representatives into the State apparatus and through inspection and supervision work.
The Party rules by law, leads the establishment of the Constitution and laws, and operates within the framework of the Constitution and laws. Party officials and members comply with and “respect” the law. The ruling Party leads the state; the power of the ruling party is political power, setting out policies and guidelines, while state power is the power to manage society on the basis of law. The leadership of the Party ensures that real power belongs to the people, the State is truly of the people, by the people, and for the people. The Party comprehensively leads the country and is responsible for all successes and shortcomings in the cause of building and defending the Fatherland.
Second, focus on streamlining the apparatus and organization of party agencies, truly becoming the intellectual core, the "general advice department", the vanguard leading state agencies. Build truly streamlined advisory agencies of the Party Committee; advisory cadres have political qualities, capacity, good professional qualifications, professional expertise, responsibility and proficiency in their work.
Research and promote the consolidation of some Party advisory and support agencies; promptly and comprehensively assess the concurrent holding of Party and political system positions to have appropriate decisions. Ensure that the Party's leadership tasks do not overlap with management tasks; distinguish and clearly define the specific tasks of leaders at all levels in different types of Party organizations, avoiding the situation of making excuses, or duplication and formality. Strongly innovate working style and manners towards science and professionalism, with the motto "right role, right lesson".
Third, strongly innovate the promulgation, dissemination and implementation of Party resolutions; build grassroots party organizations and party members who are truly "cells" of the Party. Resolutions of party committees and party organizations at all levels must be concise, easy to understand, easy to remember, easy to absorb and easy to implement; must correctly and accurately identify the requirements, tasks, paths and methods of development of the country, the nation, each locality, each ministry and sector; must have vision, scientific nature, practicality, practicality and feasibility; create excitement, trust, expectation and motivation to urge the actions of cadres, party members, economic sectors, enterprises and people to implement the Party's Resolution. The dissemination and implementation of the Resolution must create self-awareness and self-absorption, especially new viewpoints, policies and solutions. Focus on building good party cells and good party members; Improve the quality of Party cell activities and put the Party's policies and guidelines into practice.
Fourth, continue to innovate inspection and supervision work; promote the application of information technology and digital transformation in Party activities. The Party inspects and supervises so that work is performed better, resolutions are implemented effectively; the Party and State apparatus operates effectively, efficiently, in accordance with policies and guidelines, with the right people and the right jobs; promptly detect new factors, good and creative ways of doing things; correct and adjust deviations or prevent wrongdoings and violations of Party regulations and State laws.
Promote the inspection and supervision role of Party committees and inspection committees at all levels. Issue regulations on decentralization of inspection and supervision authority in conjunction with the detection and strict handling of all acts of taking advantage of inspection and supervision for corruption and negativity. Focus on digital transformation in Party work; build a database of grassroots Party organizations, Party members and Party documents, connecting from the Central to the grassroots, synchronously connecting with the national database on population and other databases, effectively serving the work of protecting internal politics and building a clean and strong Party.
V.I. Lenin taught: “When the situation has changed and we have to solve tasks of a different kind, we should not look back and use yesterday's methods”. The practice of innovation is always moving and developing, requiring constant innovation in the Party's leadership and governing methods on the basis of firmly upholding the Party's principles; imbued with the teachings of General Secretary Le Duan: “We must lead closely and with principles, never wavering before the difficulties and challenges of the revolution”./.
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[1] Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, National Political Publishing House Truth, Hanoi, 2011, vol.3, p.5
[2] Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, op. cit., vol. 5, p. 290
[3] Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, op. cit., vol. 5, p. 289
[4] Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, ibid, vol. 15, p. 622
[5] Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, op. cit., vol. 5, p. 325
[6] Ho Chi Minh: Complete Works, op. cit., vol. 5, p. 325
[7] Documents of the 7th National Congress of Delegates, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2005, p.301
[8] Documents of the Party Congress in the renovation period, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2005, p.301
[9] Documents of the 7th National Congress of Delegates, op. cit., p.329
[10] Documents of the 7th National Congress of Delegates, op. cit., p.330
[11] Documents of the 7th Mid-Term National Delegates Conference, National Political Publishing House, Hanoi, 2005, pp.438, 439
[12] Documents of the 13th National Congress of Delegates, National Political Publishing House Truth, Hanoi, 2021, p.196
