The Secretary of the Nghe An Provincial Party Committee received citizens at the regular September 2022 session.

Overview of the regular citizen reception session in September 2022 by the Provincial Party Secretary. Photo: Thanh Duy

Mr. Ho Huu Than, a member of Party Branch 8, Quynh Van Commune, Quynh Luu District, presents his opinion at the citizen reception session. Photo: Thanh Duy

The public consultation session concerned a petition from Mr. Ho Huu Than, a party member of Branch 8, Quynh Van Commune, Quynh Luu District, reflecting that the Standing Committee of the District Party Committee had clearly identified violations by Mr. Le Van Hue, currently the Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Quynh Van Commune (formerly the Secretary of the Party Committee of Quynh Van Commune), but no disciplinary action had been taken against him.

Regarding this matter, the Secretary of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee received citizens, and the Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee also issued Notice No. 616 concluding the resolution of the complaint against the Party Committee and Mr. Le Van Hue on three issues.

In this regard, the Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee concluded that Mr. Ho Huu Than's claim that the Quynh Van Commune Party Committee's decision to remove him from the position of Chairman of the Commune Farmers' Association for the 2018-2023 term was beyond its authority, contrary to the Charter of the Vietnam Farmers' Association and the Law on Civil Servants, was unfounded; however, it also pointed out the shortcomings and responsibilities of the Standing Committee of the Party Committee and the Secretary of the Party Committee of Quynh Van Commune in handling this issue, such as: not doing a good job of ideological work, as well as some policies and regulations for cadres, leading to complaints being escalated to higher levels and prolonged…

Comrade Hoang Danh Lai - Secretary of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee, speaks at the citizen reception session. Photo: Thanh Duy

Furthermore, despite having resigned from his position as Chairman of the Farmers' Association of the commune, the Party branch continued to collect Party membership fees based on his salary as Chairman of the Farmers' Association from Mr. Ho Huu Than from July to December 2021. The Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee concluded that this accusation was well-founded and clearly indicated that the responsibility lies with the Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee of Quynh Van commune for failing to promptly instruct the Party Committee Office to issue a notice adjusting the amount of Party membership fees collected from Mr. Than, so that the Party branch could be informed to collect and pay Party membership fees in accordance with regulations.

Furthermore, Mr. Ho Huu Than also stated that Mr. Le Van Hue, who served as the Party Secretary of Quynh Van commune for two consecutive terms, lacked credibility with the people. This matter has already been specifically addressed by the Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee.

Following the issuance of Conclusion Notice No. 616, the Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee and the Quynh Van Commune Party Committee developed a plan for implementation; directed relevant agencies to promptly arrange work and resolve the issue of personnel policies for Mr. Ho Huu Than in accordance with regulations; and simultaneously conducted a review of the collective Standing Committee of the Commune Party Committee and the Party Branch Committee of Branch 8, under the Quynh Van Commune Party Committee, and 3 individuals including the Secretary, Deputy Secretary of the Commune Party Committee, and 1 Party member of Branch 8, in accordance with regulations.

Comrade Bui Thanh An - Chairman of the Provincial Party Committee's Inspection Committee - speaks at the citizen reception session. Photo: Thanh Duy

During the investigation, based on the extent of Mr. Le Van Hue's involvement in the allegations made by Mr. Ho Huu Than, the Inspection Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee voted and unanimously agreed that disciplinary action was not yet necessary. At the citizen reception session, the Secretary of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee, Hoang Danh Lai, stated that the decision was appropriate. This was also the issue that Mr. Ho Huu Than disagreed with and requested a review of the decision to ensure fair and strict disciplinary action against the Party member.

Based on the analysis of records, documents, and opinions from all parties involved in the case, at the citizen reception session, the Chairman of the Provincial Party Committee's Inspection Committee, Bui Thanh An, suggested that the disciplinary process for Mr. Le Van Hue should be reviewed; and that the relationships and underlying ideologies of the Party branch where Mr. Hue was a member and the Party Committee of Quynh Van commune during the disciplinary process should be clarified.

Comrade Ho Le Ngoc - Head of the Provincial Party Committee's Internal Affairs Department, speaks at the citizen reception session. Photo: Thanh Duy

Concurring with the above viewpoint, the Head of the Provincial Party Committee's Internal Affairs Department, Ho Le Ngoc, acknowledged that Notice No. 616 of the Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee contained incomplete and inconsistent content that needed to be reviewed, including a review of the disciplinary procedures. This viewpoint from the leaders of the Provincial Party Committee's Inspection Committee and Internal Affairs Department was also supported by the representative of the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Department.

Comrade Le Quoc Khanh - Deputy Head of the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee's Organization Department, speaks at the citizen reception session. Photo: Thanh Duy

Concluding the citizen reception session, the Secretary of the Nghe An Provincial Party Committee, Thai Thanh Quy, assessed that the Conclusion Notice 616-TB/HU of the Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee had addressed both substantiated and unsubstantiated allegations; that is, it had identified the issues through the citizens' feedback, but the handling process had not been sufficiently rigorous, leading to the implementation of the Conclusion Notice not meeting the expectations and requirements of the party organizations, party members, and citizens who had reported the issues.

Therefore, to clarify this issue and provide a basis for a fundamental, clear, and decisive resolution, the Provincial Party Secretary requested the establishment of a provincial task force chaired by the Provincial Party Committee's Inspection Commission, with the participation of several Party committees of the Provincial Party Committee and relevant departments and agencies, under the direct responsibility of the Chairman of the Provincial Party Committee's Inspection Commission, to conduct a thorough review of the entire case in Quynh Luu district and Quynh Van commune.

Provincial Party Secretary Thai Thanh Quy concludes the citizen reception session. Photo: Thanh Duy

Through this process, we will specifically review which accusations are substantiated and which are not. If the accusations are true, we will determine whether the violations committed by the Standing Committee of the Party Committee of Quynh Van commune and by the individual head of the Party Committee during that period warranted disciplinary action according to Party regulations and State laws.

In addition, the Task Force also needs to review and reassess the personnel work in Quynh Van commune over the past two terms, in relation to Mr. Ho Huu Than's accusation against Mr. Le Van Hue for two consecutive terms, regarding his lack of credibility with the people. This is to address the fundamental issues and assess whether the handling by the Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee was appropriate and convincing, as this is an official under the management of the Standing Committee of the District Party Committee.

The head of the Provincial Party Committee requested that the Task Force listen to diverse perspectives, work fairly and objectively, so that when concluding the issue, it will help Quynh Van commune and the Standing Committee of the Quynh Luu District Party Committee to fully understand and resolve the issue accurately and correctly; thereby creating conditions for the locality to develop further and providing satisfactory answers to citizens. The deadline for completing the Task Force's tasks is October 15, 2022, and reporting the results to the Standing Committee of the Provincial Party Committee.