Contributing to the improvement of policies and legal frameworks.

(Baonghean) - For over a year, the Vietnam Fatherland Front and political and social organizations at all levels have strived to implement Decision No. 217-QD/TW of the Politburo on the Regulations on Social Supervision and Criticism. This has contributed to building and perfecting the policies, laws, and regulations of Party committees and governments at all levels, aligning them with the realities of social life.

Choose issues that concern the people.

With the motto of focusing on quality over quantity, the Nghi Loc Fatherland Front chose to monitor issues that voters have many concerns and suggestions about. In 2014, in addition to monitoring issues related to administrative reform and the handling of citizen complaints and denunciations in some commune-level units, it also pointed out shortcomings that needed to be addressed, such as the lack of appointment slips when handling citizen matters at the one-stop service center; and the incomplete and unscientific tracking and archiving of complaint resolution records...

Monitoring the use of pesticides in the fields of Anh Son.

The District Fatherland Front also monitored the enforcement of laws regarding temporary detention, remand, and execution of criminal sentences at the district police. This led to the detection and remediation of issues such as delays in establishing and transferring files related to suspended sentences and non-custodial rehabilitation to the commune People's Committees, as well as violations of temporary detention regulations, such as holding multiple individuals involved in the same case in the same cell, and placing detainees in the same cell.

Some localities conduct monitoring in difficult and sensitive areas of public concern. For example, the Fatherland Front of Nghia Dan district monitors the implementation of state management work on mobilizing people's contributions to build infrastructure in some commune-level units; the Fatherland Front of Cua Lo town directly monitors 57% of cases with discrepancies in disability percentages between the overall survey and actual payments in 7 wards and communes. The Fatherland Front of Tan Ky district monitors the distribution of money, gifts, and rice to policy beneficiary households, poor single-parent households, and orphans; and the construction of houses for people with meritorious services to the revolution. In Vinh City alone, in 2014, the city's Fatherland Front and its wards and communes monitored 34 thematic areas across various fields. These included administrative reform, the public service ethics of city officials and civil servants; and monitoring food safety and hygiene, and school health at 36 schools at all levels, which were highly appreciated by the Party committee, government, and people.

In 2014, the Provincial Fatherland Front also established a monitoring team to oversee the management of plant protection products in Anh Son and Dien Chau districts. Through this monitoring, the team discovered shortcomings and limitations in this area, such as stores and agencies selling pesticides without professional licenses, expired professional licenses, and improper locations for selling and storing pesticides. Following this, the Provincial People's Committee issued Document No. 8137/UBND-TN assigning the Department of Agriculture and Rural Development to lead the coordination with relevant agencies to urgently inspect, review, and rectify these shortcomings and inadequacies; and to advise and propose to the Provincial People's Committee effective solutions for directing and managing plant protection product management in the province. The comprehensive review of the implementation of preferential policies for people with meritorious service to the revolution was seriously carried out from the provincial level to the grassroots. Many issues arising after the review were resolved definitively...

Mr. Nguyen Duc Thanh, Head of the Democracy and Law Committee (Vietnam Fatherland Front of the province), said: After one year of implementing Decision 217 of the Politburo, social supervision and criticism activities have gradually become systematic and a regular working method of the Vietnam Fatherland Front and political and social organizations according to their assigned responsibilities and tasks. This has contributed to the timely detection of errors and weaknesses; the amendment of inappropriate regulations and inaccurate or incorrect content; and the ensuring the correctness and relevance of policies and guidelines to the realities of social life. At the same time, it promotes democracy, strengthens social consensus, ensures the legitimate interests of the people; builds and effectively implements the Party's guidelines and policies, the State's laws and regulations, and enhances the leadership capacity and fighting strength of Party organizations, as well as the effectiveness and efficiency of State management and all levels of government...

To make monitoring and criticism a reality

However, during the implementation process, the Fatherland Front at all levels inevitably faced difficulties in selecting content and methods, mainly learning from experience as they went along. Some localities have not yet developed and implemented monitoring and critical review plans, or have implemented monitoring and critical review activities but without going into depth, especially at the commune level. There is still a phenomenon of monitoring and critical review being merely 형식적인 (formalistic), biased, and following the wishes of leaders and authorities... The reasons are the limited capacity of the Fatherland Front and mass organization officials; they have not received proper training, especially at the district and grassroots levels. Many officials are not up to par with the task, their expertise is not high; their ability to perceive, analyze issues, evaluate, and draw conclusions is still inadequate, while many areas of independent monitoring and thematic monitoring require in-depth expertise and the involvement of experts.

According to Mr. Dau Khac Than, Vice Chairman of the Fatherland Front Committee of Nghi Loc district, the regulation requiring the Fatherland Front and other organizations to obtain approval from the Party Committee and the government for supervision purposes has created some difficulties; it is even more challenging at the commune and ward levels due to a shortage of human resources, lack of funding, and a reluctance to confront issues. Therefore, in 2014, Nghi Loc district was unable to implement supervision according to Decision 217 at the commune level. Even in Quynh Luu - one of the units considered to have implemented it quite well - only 40% of communes have implemented it, while the rest have coordinated and integrated it into the activities of the People's Inspection Committee and the Community Investment Monitoring Committee.

Another reason why the effectiveness of the Vietnam Fatherland Front's social supervision and criticism is not high is that Party committees and local authorities in many places have not truly focused on leading and coordinating with the Fatherland Front in its implementation; the coordination mechanism between the supervisory and critical entities and the subjects of supervision and criticism is still unclear, lacking sanctions and related regulations.

According to Mr. Cao Van Toan, Vice Chairman of the Vinh City Fatherland Front Committee: “To implement supervision and criticism according to Decision 217, in addition to requiring Fatherland Front officials and political and social organizations to constantly improve their professional skills and work abilities, the decisive factor remains the attention, guidance, coordination, and provision of favorable conditions in all aspects so that the Fatherland Front and organizations can confidently carry out their tasks. For example, in Vinh City, despite financial difficulties, the city still balances the budget within the Fatherland Front's general operating fund to support members of advisory boards at the same level as non-salaried members of the district-level Fatherland Front committees.”

Furthermore, the public disclosure and transparency of monitoring conclusions, as well as the rectification and correction of shortcomings and limitations after monitoring by the monitored entities; the development of mechanisms, the issuance of sanctions, and the completion of legal regulations to enable the Vietnam Fatherland Front and other mass organizations to effectively perform their functions of social supervision and criticism are also important conditions for the Politburo's Decision 217 to truly be implemented and to be effective.

Text and photos:Gia Huy