Provincial People's Council representatives: Look directly at and clearly state the pressing issues and shortcomings.

(Baonghean) - During the group discussion session on the afternoon of July 11th, the provincial People's Council delegates not only directly addressed pressing issues but also delved into analyzing and holding relevant agencies accountable. This demonstrates the delegates' strong character and high sense of responsibility in thoroughly investigating issues of concern to voters.

Examining the role of state management.

During group discussions, delegates frankly addressed the State's responsibility for managing each problematic and unresolved issue that concerns voters. Mr. Hoang Huu Hung, Vice Chairman of the Do Luong District People's Council, stated: "The people are requesting that the State management agencies and the investor promptly announce the environmental impact assessment of the Song Lam Cement Plant on the surrounding area, as voters are not reassured about environmental protection and believe there are signs of environmental impact; along with proposed solutions."

The issue of environmental pollution at Lach Van fishing port was raised by provincial People's Council representatives during a group discussion session. Photo: PV

Also related to environmental issues, delegate Nguyen Thi Lan - Deputy Head of the Culture and Social Affairs Committee of the Provincial People's Council - raised the unresolved issues from the 3rd session of the Provincial People's Council: "The environmental pollution situation at Lach Van fishing port is being resolved very slowly. This issue, which has been raised by voters for a long time, was requested by the Provincial People's Council at the beginning of the year, but it wasn't until May 15, 2017, that the Environmental Protection Sub-Department and the People's Committee of Dien Chau District issued a document on June 7, 2017, requesting relevant parties to address it." Delegate Nguyen Xuan Duong - Deputy Secretary of the Provincial Party Committee and Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee - requested the Department of Natural Resources and Environment to coordinate with the investor of Song Lam Cement Plant to announce the environmental impact assessment results, and for Do Luong District to monitor the plant's implementation of its commitments.

At discussion group number 2, regarding the health insurance fund, delegate Pham Thi Hong Toan - Editor-in-Chief of Nghe An Newspaper - assessed that the integrated healthcare system has helped improve the quality of medical facilities and create favorable conditions for people; however, the issue of overspending in the health insurance fund has emerged. Specifically addressing the shortcomings in the handling by relevant sectors, and emphasizing the concern about overpayments currently affecting medical facilities in the province, the delegate argued that raising the issue of exceeding the ceiling and fund limits for medical facilities is inappropriate because with the integrated system, health insurance cardholders have the right to choose their medical facility for examination and treatment.

On the other hand, the social insurance sector is worried about exceeding its budget and spending limits, and hospitals are concerned about how to avoid being rejected for claims, but the health sector has almost not taken any professional action, leaving it to the social insurance sector and hospitals to handle things themselves. "The province and the health sector must get involved in this matter decisively, first and foremost by stabilizing hospitals to alleviate concerns about claims rejection and ensure the quality of medical examination and treatment for the people," suggested delegate Pham Thi Hong Toan.

Delegate Pham Thi Hong Toan delivers her remarks. Photo: Thanh Duy

Concerned about the province's administrative reform index dropping 17 places in 2016 compared to 2015, delegate Tran Thanh Thuy, Director of Nghe An Telecommunications, suggested that it is necessary to clearly identify which sectors and localities caused the decline in the administrative reform index; and to severely criticize and hold accountable the sectors and localities responsible for implementing administrative reforms. The delegate appreciated the province's plan to evaluate and rank the administrative reform index of localities and sectors, but requested that the criteria be clearly published. The delegate also emphasized the need to promote the application of information technology in administrative reform. "We have good tools, but if the departments and agencies don't get involved, there will be a great waste," delegate Tran Thanh Thuy stated.

Regarding the issue of building new rural areas, delegate Hoang Danh Lai - Chairman of the People's Committee of Quynh Luu district - raised the current problem of widespread outstanding debts related to new rural development, with some areas having quite large debts, and wondered if the province has any solutions to overcome this! The delegate also stated that currently only 3 communes in the entire province have been included in the planning for model new rural development, including Quynh Doi commune (Quynh Luu).

However, the province lacks specific policies and mechanisms for these three communes, making it difficult for the locality to achieve its goals. Representative Ho Phuc Hop, Head of the Provincial Party Committee's Propaganda Department, stated: "Within one year, only 100 billion VND of outstanding debt has been cleared, mainly from the provincial budget. This doesn't even account for unforeseen factors such as maintaining sustainable targets and incurring new debts. Building new rural areas while burdened with such a huge debt – is that really what a new rural area should be like?" He urged the Provincial People's Committee and relevant authorities to address this issue.

"Price drop" - loss of systemic control?

The issue of falling agricultural prices, which directly affects the lives of farmers, received special attention from delegates and was discussed and analyzed objectively with perspectives from multiple viewpoints. Referring to the agricultural market, delegate Pham Van Hoa, Chief of the Provincial People's Council Office, stated that "our agricultural market is completely out of control."

Delegate Vi Van Hoe (Ky Son district) suggested that the province should direct the development of production models for ethnic minorities in mountainous areas to achieve sustainable poverty reduction. (Photo: Mai Hoa)

Expressing concern about the drop in passion fruit prices at the beginning of 2017, which was only half the price of 2016, despite passion fruit being included in the province's key crop project, delegate Luu Van Hung - Vice Chairman of the People's Council of Que Phong district - suggested that the province needs mechanisms and policies to ensure sustainable agricultural development. This includes paying attention to the planning of agricultural and forestry development throughout the province and effectively managing the plan to avoid spontaneous development. Mr. Hung cited the example of shallot cultivation in Anh Son district, which previously yielded a profit of 100 million VND/hectare; subsequently, shallots were planted extensively in Do Luong and Nghi Loc districts, and when shallot prices became too low, various levels and sectors launched campaigns to "rescue" the shallot crop. Similarly, in Con Cuong district, the cultivation of rattan and Centella asiatica has been ineffective for decades, and these models need to be terminated to develop more suitable agricultural models that bring economic benefits to the people.

Representative Dang Thi Thanh, Vice Chairwoman of the Dien Chau District People's Council, expressed concern about the decrease in pork and duck prices while animal feed prices remained high. Deputy Head of the Provincial People's Council's Legal Affairs Committee, Tran Dinh Toan, pointed out: "The reality shows that clean agricultural products raised using traditional methods are still selling well and fetching good prices. Meanwhile, industrial farming leads to lower product quality, which the market doesn't accept, resulting in a 'surplus crisis' and price drops. Therefore, it is necessary to rectify the situation and guide farmers to produce in accordance with market demand."

Many pig farms are operating at a reduced capacity due to the extremely low price of live pigs. Photo: Nguyen Son

Regarding the issue of agricultural products, some opinions delved into analyzing the causes and shortcomings, not only the responsibility of the State, but also the responsibility of farmers and related organizations. Representative Nguyen Thi Nhan - Vice Chairman of the Yen Thanh District People's Council - suggested that cooperatives need to enhance their operational role after the transformation to better fulfill their functions, including providing quality and affordable fertilizers to farmers. The Farmers' Association should not "encroach" on business activities, including the current fertilizer supply service. Agreeing with this point, Representative Vuong Quang Minh - Vice Chairman of the Provincial Fatherland Front - suggested that relevant agencies need to strengthen inspection and management of fertilizers to ensure that fertilizers reaching farmers are of guaranteed quality and to prevent the sale of counterfeit or substandard fertilizers.

Besides the aforementioned issues, delegates also discussed many issues of concern to voters throughout the province, such as the inadequacies and waste in the labor and employment situation; the re-encroachment on traffic safety corridors; and the ineffectiveness of poverty reduction support programs. The issues discussed by the Provincial People's Council delegates in the eight working groups were addressed, explained, and accepted by representatives of relevant departments and agencies. The responsible and decisive involvement of the People's Council delegates from the group discussions promises that the discussions in the plenary session on the morning of July 12th and the questioning session on the afternoon of July 12th will truly ensure that the 4th session of the 17th Provincial People's Council continues to be a working session that meets expectations regarding the quality of the work of the body representing the rights and interests of the people, by the people, and for the people.

Reporters' Team