Party building

Lesson 1: Officials "lead the way, set the example"

Reporters • August 23, 2024 10:22

With the motto "Party members lead the way, the people follow," the cadres and Party members of the mountainous district of Tuong Duong have demonstrated a pioneering and exemplary spirit in economic development and poverty alleviation... As a result, many exemplary economic development models led by Party members have emerged.

ReportersAugust 22, 2024

In Tham Tham village, Nhon Mai commune (Tuong Duong district), a border area, village head Va Ba Ca is loved and trusted by the people because he is a man of his word.

As the head of the highland village, Va Ba Ca, along with the Party Branch and the Management Board of Tham Tham village, has always been concerned about finding ways to propagate and mobilize people to actively change the structure of crops and livestock, and diligently develop household economies to reduce poverty in accordance with the direction of the Party Committee's Resolution and the reality in the area.

Mr. Va Ba Ca always believed that for the people to listen and trust, the leaders of the villages and hamlets, like himself, could not lag behind, but had to "lead the way and act first" to change the perceptions, ways of thinking, ways of doing, and old farming practices of the people, from reclaiming land and planting corn and rice to growing ginger and peaches...

When no one in the village dared to grow passion fruit, Mr. Va Ba Ca boldly experimented with 300 plants, then expanded the area to 700 plants, yielding high economic value; from then on, the villagers followed suit. When passion fruit was no longer profitable due to pests and diseases, Mr. Va Ba Ca pioneered the removal of over 2 hectares and switched to growing high-yield cassava, earning 60-70 million VND per year.

Mr. Va Ba Ca is also one of the pioneering households in Tham Tham village in growing ornamental peach trees, with 3 gardens, each with several hundred trees, earning an average income of 20-30 million VND per Tet peach blossom season.

Seeing the village chief's successful peach tree cultivation, many people in Tham Tham village started planting them as well, some with a few dozen trees, others with 100-300 trees; in 2023 alone, the entire village planted more than 3,000 new trees.

Village head Va Ba Ca also boldly applied science and technology to develop livestock farming, helping to improve the quality of the herd, such as building warm cages to raise chicks; planting elephant grass to fatten buffaloes and cows... Thanks to his diligence and hard work, Mr. Va Ba Ca has now become "rich" with nearly 40 free-range buffaloes and cows; and a flock of over 100 chickens.

"On average, the family sells 7-8 buffaloes and cows a year; plus income from ginger, peaches, cassava, etc., bringing in about 100-150 million VND, enough to support two older children studying at university and the younger one in primary school," Mr. Va Ba Ca shared.

Many villagers in Tham Tham saw that the village head's family had a stable economic situation, so they came to visit and learn how to do it. Mr. Va Ba Ca patiently guided them step by step and shared his experience.

Comrade Luong Van Hoa, Secretary of the Party Committee of Nhon Mai commune, said: "In this remote border region, people like Mr. Va Ba Ca, who refuse to accept poverty, overcome difficulties to become successful entrepreneurs, raise two children to university, and also care for the people and the village, are 'rare'."

Meanwhile, in Tat village – a remote area in Yen Thang commune – former village head Mac Van Thanh (born in 1963) is known as a pioneering Party member in developing household economies in the area.

Not only did he have a knack for successfully cultivating over 2000 saplings of the Mú Từn tree – a natural medicinal herb with many uses – from the deep forest in his home garden, but he also boldly invested in livestock farming with 40 buffaloes and cows, 10 porcupines, dug two fish ponds, planted over 1 hectare of acacia and mahogany trees, and hundreds of bamboo trees; becoming an exemplary figure of overcoming hardship for the villagers to follow.

Many people from the village, commune, and surrounding areas heard the news and came to visit and learn about the techniques of breeding mangroves and raising porcupines. Mr. Thanh shared his knowledge and provided guidance in a warm and open manner.

Mr. Thanh said: "I am a Party member, the former village head's son is also a Party member and is currently the deputy village head, so I must set an example. Besides, the lives of the people in Tat village are still very difficult; they only have 1.5 hectares of arable land, and nearly 100 people in the village work far away. If we can develop more household economic models, the lives of the people will be less difficult, and they won't have to leave their hometown to work far away anymore."

In many areas, village leaders not only skillfully mobilize the people in building new rural areas and eradicating poverty, but also quickly apply social media to promote and introduce local agricultural products, helping people sell their products and increase their income.

For example, Ms. Kha Thi Bich, Secretary of the Party Branch of Phay village, Xieng My commune, believes that "to accelerate the fight against poverty, cadres and Party members, especially the leaders of villages and hamlets, must 'walk the talk' so that the people will trust and respect them."

Ms. Bich explored social media applications, including Facebook and Zalo, to promote and purchase various agricultural products from local people in Xieng My and Nga My communes, such as wild palm fruit, dried banana seeds with wild honey, black chickens, black pigs, catfish, and Muscovy ducks, supplying them to those in need.

When the number of orders increased, Ms. Bich traveled to neighboring areas such as Tam Hop commune (Tuong Duong district) to purchase clean agricultural products and local plants and animals such as ginger, bamboo shoots, turmeric, chicken, and pigs to bring back to the lowlands. At the same time, she imported goods from the lowlands such as fish, squid, shrimp, and soft drinks to serve people in the highlands. In addition, she invested in raising black pigs, planting over 3 hectares of forest, growing grass, and raising 5 buffaloes and cows.

Commenting on Party Branch Secretary Kha Thi Bich, the head of Phay village, Mr. Tinh Van Hong, said: "Here, the villagers call Ms. Bich 'the diligent person of the village' because of her tireless work ethic. When she's not busy with village affairs, she's either working in the fields or buying and packing agricultural products to send to the lowlands. Her family even invested in a pickup truck to help with the buying and transporting of goods."

Currently, some households in Phay village and other villages in the commune have followed the example of Party Branch Secretary Kha Thi Bich, using social media to directly promote and sell the products they produce and raise, bringing the specialties of the mountains and forests to all corners of the country.

Imbued with President Ho Chi Minh's teachings, "Cadres and Party members must set an example for the people. Senior cadres must set an example for junior cadres," many leaders in localities throughout the mountainous district of Tuong Duong have demonstrated the spirit of "matching words with actions."

They not only performed well in "Party work, people work, and government work" but also pioneered in developing household economies, striving to become legitimately wealthy.

A prime example is Ms. Kha Thi Hien, Chairwoman of the People's Committee of Tam Quang commune, a role model of an ethnic minority woman who overcame difficulties to become an exemplary leader and a successful entrepreneur in the locality.

Starting as an agricultural extension worker and Vice President of the Farmers' Association of Tam Quang commune, while working and studying at the University of Agriculture and Forestry, in August 2010, Ms. Kha Thi Hien was elected to the position of Vice President of the People's Committee of Tam Quang commune at the age of 26, becoming the youngest Vice President of the People's Committee of a commune in Tuong Duong district at that time.

Dynamic, creative, and daring, since October 2020, Ms. Hien has been entrusted with the responsibility of Chairwoman of the People's Committee of Tam Quang border commune.

As the head of the commune government, female "leader" Kha Thi Hien always maintains a friendly, sincere, and open demeanor, frequently staying close to the local area and grassroots level. Sometimes she wades through rice fields and climbs hills to monitor production, other times she crosses streams and passes over 10 kilometers to inspect the people's water supply projects.

With the belief that "officials must set an example," outside of office hours, on weekends, local people are familiar with the sight of the Chairwoman of the People's Committee of Xiêng My commune, Kha Thị Hiền, in her work clothes, going to the fields with her husband - a former land administration official of Xiêng My commune - to plant acacia trees and raise livestock.

The result of that hard work and diligence is four acacia plantations covering more than 7 hectares, over 10 buffaloes and cows, dozens of chickens and ducks, and seasonal fruits and vegetables.

Ms. Kha Thi Hien shared: "The locality has 11 villages, including 2 border villages, with 1,971 households/7,806 people of Kinh, Thai, Khmu, Dan Lai, and Tay Poong ethnic groups living together, and the economy still faces many difficulties."

To gradually eliminate the mindset of waiting and relying on others among cadres, Party members, and the people, and to build a spirit of self-reliance in building new rural areas, we have determined that first and foremost, the heads of Party committees and governments must "set an example" in both thinking and action.

Not only "leader" Kha Thi Hien, but in Tam Quang commune, many officials and Party members have demonstrated a spirit of daring to think and act, pioneering in the emulation movement of excellent production and business, and legitimately enriching themselves through effective economic models; and readily supporting people with experience and knowledge in livestock farming and crop cultivation. For example, the family of Mr. Lo Quang Hop - Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People's Council of Tam Quang commune, whose wife is the Party Secretary of the village, has a model of raising bamboo rats, planting acacia trees, raising sows, chickens, and fish ponds that generate high income. "We have to be able to do it ourselves before we can convince the people; otherwise, they will say 'officials only talk...'," Mr. Lo Quang Hop expressed.

In Xieng My commune, Ms. Loc Thi Van, the Standing Deputy Secretary of the Commune Party Committee, is also a shining example of diligence and hard work. Starting as an officer at the Nga My Commune Health Station, after the commune's separation in April 2007, Ms. Van transitioned to the position of Vice Chairman, then Chairman of the Commune's Fatherland Front Committee, and is currently the Standing Deputy Secretary of the Xieng My Commune Party Committee (term 2020-2025).

As a Party official, Ms. Van always believed that to truly be an exemplary and reputable official, someone whose words resonate with and gain the trust of the people, in addition to fulfilling her responsibilities and duties to the Party and the people, she must also strive to achieve legitimate wealth.

True to their word, outside of working hours, the couple took on the role of farmers, tending to the acacia and eucalyptus trees in the fields, and planting grass for the cows… As a result of many years of hard work, Ms. Van's family now owns 8 hectares of acacia, 2 hectares of mahogany, 15 cows, and hundreds of chickens… bringing in an average income of 500 million VND per year.

Ms. Loc Thi Van shared: “At the office, I'm a civil servant, but when I go to the fields, I'm also a farmer, no different from the local people. In the role of a local resident, I understand better what crops to plant and what livestock to raise to bring economic value to the area. At the same time, from practical production experience, I can share and exchange experiences in economic development with the people in the commune so we can all work together.”

Xieng My commune has 7 villages, with 717 households/3,034 people of Thai, Khmu, and Kinh ethnicity; it is an area with a low starting point, where the lives of the people are still difficult, and the poverty rate is currently 26%.

Therefore, in implementing Project 07 DA/HU of the Tuong Duong District Party Committee on "eliminating conservative, dependent, and complacent thinking among cadres, Party members, and the people," the Xieng My Commune Party Committee adheres to the motto "Party members lead the way, the people follow"; only when cadres and Party members "walk the talk," and strive to become prosperous and wealthy through their own labor, will they be able to spread and encourage the spirit of daring to think and act among the people.

Accordingly, in Xieng My commune, many other officials are also pioneers in developing household economies, such as the families of comrades: Lo Van Danh - Chairman of the Farmers' Association with a model of forest planting, livestock farming, and purchasing agricultural products from the people; Vi Van Ba ​​- Secretary of the Youth Union of the commune with a model of crop cultivation and livestock farming…