Handling the backlog of policies and regimes for people with meritorious services: Need to be resolved once and for all!

(Baonghean) - Nghe An currently has over 80,000 people receiving preferential allowances for people with revolutionary contributions. In recent years, the province has always identified the implementation of policies for people with revolutionary contributions as a key task, contributing to ensuring social security. However, the handling of backlogs of regimes and policies for people with revolutionary contributions is still slow...

Lots of backlog

According to the data of the General Review of the implementation of preferential policies for people with revolutionary contributions according to Directive No. 23/CT-TTg dated October 27, 2013 of the Prime Minister, in Nghe An, the total number of subjects reviewed was 105,489 people, of which the correct number of beneficiaries was 101,567 people (accounting for 96.3%), the number of beneficiaries was incomplete in 2,282 cases (2.16%), the number of beneficiaries was incorrect in 61 people (0.057%), the number of people requesting to resolve the regime after review (also known as not yet enjoying the regime) was 11,260 cases. According to the report of the Central Steering Committee for the General Review of the implementation of preferential policies for people with revolutionary contributions, Nghe An is one of the localities with the largest number of beneficiaries who are not fully enjoying the regime and have not yet enjoyed the regime in the country.

Officers of the Military Command of Dien Chau district guide people to complete procedures and documents to resolve policies and regimes. Photo: Ho Linh

Of these, 2,616 former Youth Volunteers requested to receive policies like war invalids and 3,549 former Youth Volunteers requested to receive one-time benefits. According to Ms. Pham Thi Phong, Vice President of the Provincial Association of Former Youth Volunteers, among the wounded former Youth Volunteers who have not yet been recognized as war invalids, there are 1,100 cases that have established records requesting disability assessment according to the provisions of Joint Circular No. 16/1999 from 2000 to present but have not yet received disability assessment. In addition, there are more than 150 Youth Volunteers who died without documents and have not yet received martyr benefits. According to Ms. Phong, the reason for the backlog is that Circular No. 28/2013/TTLT-BLDTBXH-BQP dated February 22, 2013 on guidelines for identifying martyrs, war invalids, and beneficiaries of policies like war invalids without documents has many inappropriate regulations. For example, the requirement to have physical wounds, metal fragments in the body and to have legal documents proving the process of participating in the revolution before December 31, 2014. In fact, many people who participated in the Youth Volunteer Force were injured but no longer had metal fragments or physical wounds...

In recent years, the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the Provincial Emulation and Reward Board - the Department of Home Affairs and the Provincial Youth Volunteer Liaison Board have coordinated to appraise the dossiers and propose the Provincial People's Committee to resolve the regime and policies for the Youth Volunteers. Up to now, the Provincial Emulation and Reward Board - the Department of Home Affairs has received 12,894 Youth Volunteer dossiers. The Provincial People's Committee has issued decisions to resolve subsidies for 8,239 people; 236 other dossiers have been appraised by the Provincial Emulation and Reward Board and submitted to the Provincial People's Committee for decision. Currently, there are still 1,503 dossiers under appraisal. According to the report of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs, the department is currently directing agencies, departments, branches and localities to complete the dossier to resolve one-time subsidies for 3,549 cases of former youth volunteers and 2,616 youth volunteers, frontline laborers, and guerrillas who enjoy the same regimes and policies as war invalids...

The main reason for the backlog of Youth Volunteers' files is the delay and lack of determination of local authorities. For example, in Nghi Loc district, for many years, the Nghi Van commune government and the district's Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs have not been able to completely resolve the regime and policies for 4 Youth Volunteers in the commune, including Phan Thi Trung, Nguyen Thi Huong and Nguyen Van Kinh (who died from being hit by an American bomb) and a young woman named Le Thi Su who was seriously injured. These people were hit by a bomb while on duty protecting the Bai Dop military fuel depot in Nghi Kieu commune on the morning of May 21, 1968. In 1997, Ms. Su and relatives of the 3 youth volunteers from Nghi Van commune submitted a petition to the authorities to be recognized as martyrs and war invalids. In August 2011, the General Department of Logistics sent a dispatch requesting agencies, departments and branches of Nghe An province to prepare a dossier to request consideration and resolution of the regime according to the current policies of the Party and State for the above cases. However, 18 years have passed since the application was filed, but Ms. Su and the relatives of the youth volunteers have not received any benefits. Mr. Nguyen Tien Dung, Deputy Head of the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs of Nghi Loc district, explained: “The families’ applications were submitted to the Nghi Van Commune People’s Committee, but due to the death of the commune’s policy officer, the applications were lost”…

Another backlog is those who participated in the resistance war and were exposed to toxic chemicals. After the General Review, the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs received and reviewed 1,844 files, of which 1,164 cases were transferred to the Medical Examination Council. Up to now, the whole province still has more than 2,500 cases of medical examination and assessment applications that have not been resolved, some are being reviewed, some do not have enough paperwork and have not been assessed. Mr. Cao Dang Nien, Chairman of the Association of Agent Orange Victims in Dien Chau District, said: “The entire district still has more than 2,500 applications for confirmation of people exposed to toxic chemicals that have not been resolved. In addition to the lack of relevant documents, the slow resolution is also due to the list of diseases related to exposure to toxic chemicals, which Circular 41 of the Ministry of Health - Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs has some unreasonable points. For example, cancer, toxic chemicals entering the body can cause cancer in any part of the body, but the Circular only stipulates the following types of cancer: prostate, bronchus, trachea, larynx, primary liver, soft tissue. Therefore, people with these diseases have not yet received their benefits."

Besides, Nghe An is still slow in conferring and posthumously conferring the honorary title of “Heroic Vietnamese Mother”. According to reports from districts, cities and towns, the province currently has 1,815 Heroic Vietnamese Mothers who are eligible for conferment and posthumous conferment. The province has conferred the title to 1,039 mothers. To date, there are still 776 mothers who have not been conferred or posthumously conferred.

A long-standing issue that has not been resolved is the bonus of the Certificate of Merit from the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee for those who participated in the resistance war. The whole province has 80,000 people who have been awarded Certificates of Merit by the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee for their contributions to the country during the struggle for national liberation. However, up to this point, there have only been Certificates of Merit but no bonus for those who have received Certificates of Merit. The main reason is that there has not been any budget allocated from the Central Government.

Need drastic interventionand synchronize

Mr. Nguyen Dang Duong, Deputy Director of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, explained that Nghe An is a province with a large area and a large number of policy beneficiaries, so the work of resolving the backlog of policy implementation for people with meritorious services faces many difficulties. The reality is that currently, the authorities at the commune, ward, town and district, city and town levels in many localities are still very slow in handling and lacking responsibility towards people with meritorious services. For example, 2 years ago, the Ministry of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs and the Ministry of National Defense issued Joint Circular No. 28/2013 on guidelines for confirming martyrs, war invalids, and beneficiaries of policies like war invalids who no longer have documents. The Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs organized training sessions, issued documents directing the People's Committees of districts, cities, towns and related agencies to guide, propagate and inform people to implement. However, nearly 2 years after Circular No. 28 was issued, the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs has not received any documents.

Youth Union members of Thanh Chuong District visit and give gifts to policy beneficiaries in Thanh Van commune. Photo: Nguyen Thi Quynh

Due to the lack of strong direction from authorities at all levels, beneficiaries lack information. According to the feedback of many families with people infected with toxic chemicals, the implementation of instructions for people is not specific and clear. Although each time additional conditions are added, the authorities provide training and dissemination, but only a few officers implement the changes, while the majority of beneficiaries do not know about those changes, leading to late submission of documents or not having enough paperwork.

Resolving policies and regimes is a complicated issue, involving many people, many different agencies and units. Ms. Le Thi Thuy, Head of the Department of Policy for Meritorious People (Department of Labor - Invalids and Social Affairs) said that currently, the Ministry of Health has not issued a list of congenital malformations of children of people infected with toxic chemicals; there are no instructions on reproductive abnormalities, and paperwork and procedures cause confusion for confirmation at the local level...

Currently, the Provincial People's Committee is directing the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs as well as related departments, branches, and political and social organizations to take measures to speed up the settlement of backlogs for meritorious people. Mr. Nguyen Dang Duong, Deputy Director of the Department of Labor, War Invalids and Social Affairs, said that in the immediate future, the province will request central ministries and branches to study and give policies on confirming meritorious people and implementing the right regimes and policies for the right people. “In addition, the Department also calls for stronger participation from functional agencies, especially the People's Committees of districts, cities, towns, communes, wards and townships, which need to further enhance their responsibility in preparing records, assessing and urging the settlement of regimes and policies for people with meritorious services. This is not only the responsibility of the younger generation for the sacrifices and losses of previous generations, but also demonstrates the superior and humane policies of the Party and State towards those who have sacrificed for the cause of building and defending the Fatherland,” Mr. Nguyen Dang Duong affirmed.

Minh Quan