Managing party members working away from home: Many shortcomings

(Baonghean) -Managing party members working far away is very difficult for party cells and grassroots party organizations, because they cannot monitor the work and activities of party members. Through research, most party members working far away are eager to join the Party and maintain party activities when returning to their hometowns.

Difficult to manage

Comrade Ngo Hung Trung - born in 1987, Hai Binh Party Cell - Nghi Hai Ward, Cua Lo Town, joined the Party in 2008, and is being considered by the Party Cell to leave his place of residence to go to the South to do business within 12 months. However, according to the Party Cell's request, Party member Ngo Hung Trung must commit to maintaining contact with his new place of residence as well as his workplace to report to the Party Cell when returning to the year-end activities. Mr. Trung said: "I plan to work for a foreign electronics company, but there is no Party organization at my new workplace, so Party activities will not be possible. Therefore, I hope that the Party Cell will create conditions for me to participate in activities and fulfill my responsibilities and obligations as a Party member when I return home."

Exchange information about party members working far away in Dien Thai commune (Dien Chau).

Since the beginning of the year, Nghi Hai Ward Party Committee has had 3 party members submit applications to leave their place of residence to work far away. In order to create conditions for party members to be exempted from party activities according to Regulation 45 - QD/T.Ư dated November 1, 2011 on the management of party activities and transfer of party activities, Nghi Hai Party Committee has instructed those who go to work far away to submit applications for exemption from party activities during the time they leave their place of residence. At the same time, the Party Committee also requested that the grassroots Party Committees need to "closely follow" their party members to grasp the aspirations and family circumstances of each party member in order to promptly guide them to complete the procedures in accordance with regulations. Comrade Ngo Thanh Linh - Standing Deputy Secretary of Nghi Hai Ward Party Committee said: "There are 2 types of party members who work far away in Nghi Hai: those who work far away seasonally but still return to participate fully during the activities do not need to submit an application and their party membership status at their workplace is not managed. As for party members who leave their place of residence within 12 months, they are required to have close contact with the party organization in their hometown. At the end of the year, party members are required to have comments on their workplace, and at the same time, they are required to honestly report on their training and education at their workplace. Thanks to that, most party members who return to activities meet the requirements of party membership". Currently, Nghi Hai Party Committee has 471 party members; there are currently 9 party members working far away, since the beginning of the term, 6 party members have been removed from their names due to working far away and not participating in activities according to regulations.

At Dien Thai Party Committee (Dien Chau), there are 324 party members, but 30 party members are working far away. Since the beginning of the term, Dien Thai has had to remove the names of 4 party members because they have been working far away for longer than the prescribed time limit. Through the survey, basically, party members of Dien Thai Party Committee have close ties with the Party cell. Many party members, although working in southern provinces such as Binh Duong and Dong Nai, still regularly call the Party cell Secretary to report on the situation and promptly grasp the Party cell's policies.

According to the summary of the Organizing Committee of Dien Chau District Party Committee, out of 13,908 party members of the entire Party Committee, in 2013, there were 219 party members who had not been evaluated and classified, and 27 party members whose names were removed from the list of party members, most of whom were working far away. The most difficult thing for party members who go to work abroad is to maintain contact with the party organization and participate in activities according to regulations, so when the deadline has passed, their names are removed from the list of party members.

The Party Committee of Cua Lo Town has 3,396 party members. In 2013, 150 party members were admitted, but 14 party members had to be removed from their names, including 9 overseas workers, accounting for 10% of the newly admitted party members. Mr. Hoang Sy Cuong - Head of the Organizing Committee of Cua Lo Town Party Committee said: "For party members who work far away but only in the country, we can still convene them for activities every year. However, the management of overseas party members still has many shortcomings because most of the party members who go abroad to work are gone beyond the time limit allowed by the Party Charter."

In Party Cell 5B, Hung Dao Commune - Hung Nguyen, party members who go to work abroad only need to submit a request for exemption from party activities, pay full party fees, and maintain regular contact with the grassroots Party Committee to not be removed from the Party organization. However, the Party Committees at all levels have not yet found an effective solution to ensure that party members who are working abroad for a period exceeding the time limit prescribed by the Party Charter are not removed from their names. According to the 2013 summary report, Hung Nguyen had 705/6,262 cases of party members exempted from party activities, including 107 party members who went to work far away. Procedures have been completed to remove the names of 6 party members who went to work abroad because they did not submit a request for exemption from party activities, did not participate in paying monthly party fees, and did not participate in the party cell activities at the end of the year.

The awareness of party members is also the reason why the management of party members working far away still has many shortcomings. Because there are still many party members who leave their place of residence to work far away without reporting to the party cell committee, so creating conditions for them not to be removed from their names is only for 3 to 12 months at most. Some party members have submitted applications for exemption from activities, but during the time of working far away, they have no connection with the party cell committee in their hometown, and by the end-of-year meeting, there is no self-criticism or comments on the workplace.

Need special mechanism

Currently, our province has 173,943 party members, of which 14,368 are exempted from evaluation, the number of party members who have not been evaluated is 3,009, of which wards and communes have 2,674 party members. Of the 2,674 party members in the ward and communes who have not been evaluated, most are party members who work far away and have not had time to participate in the year-end meeting at the grassroots level, most of whom are party members who have gone to work abroad.

On February 25, 2014, the Provincial Party Committee's Organizing Committee issued Official Dispatch No. 1594 - CV/BTCTU on the work of transferring party activities and verifying party members' backgrounds abroad, attaching a list and addresses of 62 countries in the world with the Communist Party of Vietnam organization for party committees at all levels to directly disseminate to party members, so that when party members participate in overseas labor, they can directly contact the addresses with the Communist Party of Vietnam organization in the host countries. However, according to Ms. Le Thi Hoai Nam - Deputy Head of the Provincial Party Committee's Organizing Committee, most party members who go abroad to earn a living are "concerned about making ends meet" and few think about finding the above addresses to register for transferring party activities.

In Clause 3, Article 3, in Official Dispatch No. 228 - QD/TU dated February 7, 2014, which stipulates the duties of party members and the management of party members abroad, it is clearly stated that party members who go abroad for more than 12 months must transfer their official party activities abroad through the foreign party committee. In special cases, for party members who go to work alone, go on personal business to areas without a party organization or where conditions for participating in party activities are difficult, the grassroots party committee shall allow party members to be exempted from party activities while abroad. Party members who are exempted from party activities must always maintain their party membership, pay party fees according to regulations, and annually submit a written review report to the domestic grassroots party committee. According to the representative of the Nghi Hai ward party committee - Cua Lo town, this is considered an official dispatch that "relaxes" the management of party members going to work abroad. Because in reality, up to now in Nghi Hai, party members who went to work abroad have had their names removed, although there were many cases where they still wanted to be in the party when they returned. Sharing the same view, Mr. Ho Van Hiep, Head of the Organizing Committee of Hung Nguyen District Party Committee, said: "In order not to "lose" party members, party organizations need to have appropriate ways of working that are close to reality but must adhere to the Party Charter. Official Letter 228 has partly resolved the shortcomings in the management of party members working abroad.

Ms. Le Thi Hoai Nam said: “Currently, the grassroots Party Committees are proposing that the Central Secretariat should study and consider a mechanism for Party members who go to work abroad to return to the Party organization. If the period of exemption from activities expires, Party members only need to report back, and when the activities are due, they only need to report and review, and it will still be considered as activities. In this way, Party members will not lose their political rights and the Party organization will still retain its resources. Most Party members who go to work abroad still maintain the good qualities of Party members that they have worked hard to cultivate to join the Party, so creating conditions for them to join the Party after working abroad is necessary.”

Thanh Nga