Leadership culture of political cadres is shown in the party work and political work. It helps spreading the Party and military culture and the tradition of the units, hence sprouting and promoting the overall strength, and building the Military politically strong, making the units all-round strong and enhancing their combat strength. Therefore, how to build leadership capability for political cadres at grassroots units is an important issue in the current situation.
At grassroots units, political cadres preside over political activities. Their function is to tap into the potential and promote the internal strength of officers and soldiers to make sure that their units always accomplish the assigned tasks in any situations. In order to build the leadership culture for political cadres at grassroots units, it is necessary to grasp and carry out synchronously a number of measures for developing the elements in their leadership culture structure. Here are the main ones:
First, strengthening education and training of revolutionary ethics, cultural lifestyle and socialist ideals for political cadres. Party committees, commandants and political organs at all levels should pay attention to the education of politics, ideology, ethics and lifestyle for political cadres; make them truly imbued with the Party’s ideals, shape their revolution view, and build necessary qualities of a political cadre. At the same time, further develop and promote the role of cultural institutions to prevent the degradation in political ideology, morality, lifestyle to contribute to counter the bad values to develop the ethics, lifestyle and ideal of political cadres in accordance with the standards of a political cadre in the Military.
Second, developing the comprehensive knowledge for political cadres. In particular, it is necessary to educate Marxism – Leninism, the guidelines and viewpoints of the Party, laws and policies of the State; the knowledge of political science, managerial and commanding skills; knowledge and skill in political work and party work, etc. These are the tool for political cadres to approach the cultural values of the Party, the State, the cultural quintessence of the nation and leadership and commanding culture, then transforming them into their personality. These are the conditions for perfecting the personality and strengthening the steadfastness and revolutionary viewpoint, the basis for them to choose, propose and adjust their bahaviour in leading, managing and commanding their units in accordance with the standards of relationships, etc.
In addition, political cadres should be equipped with knowledge of management so that they can opportunely grasp the events, situations, analyze the mood, attitude and response of different objects in different times to give out corresponding responses. Regarding this, party work and political work skills are necessary as they help political cadres spread the Party and Military cultural values to the soldiers, hence nurturing the good affection, belief, attitude and will of soldiers in each of their activities. Thereby, in educational institutions, it is necessary to equip political cadres with efficient, comprehensive and relevant knowledge of party work and political work. At grassroots units, it is necessary to have supplementary training to equip them with practical knowledge and skills that they haven’t learnt at schools before.
Third, nurturing and developing working manner for political cadres. Working style, including leading style is the measure for concretizing the general values of the Party and military culture into practical activities of units and of each soldier, and a tool for showing leadership culture of political cadres. This is the scientific, democratic, socialized and law-abiding working style which is established on the study and application of Marxist methodology and practical experience. Therefore, since their education in military schools to their practical work as a political cadre at grassroots units, they should attach importance to the development of material dialectic thinking and how to apply that thinking into the settlement of practical matters, which is the foundation for the establishment of working style of political cadres. The education of knowledge, training of skills in schools should focus on both theory and practice of work of political cadres. Grassroots unit is the environment for testing and training working style of political cadres most effectively and accurately. It helps shaping and nurturing their working style to suit the reality. For this reason, it is necessary to attach special importance to nurturing the working style of political cadres through practical operations.
At present, the nurturing of working style for political cadres at grassroots units should be associated with the implementation of the Central Resolution 4 (12th tenure) on Party building and rectification; the regulations of the Party Central Committee, the Politburo, the Secretariat and the Standing Office of the Central Military Commission on the responsibility for exemplary role; the Directive No. 05-CT/TW of the Politburo (12th tenure) on strengthening the studying and following of Ho Chi Minh thoughts, morality and style, and the Drive of “Promoting tradition, dedicating talents, deserving to be Uncle Ho’s soldiers”. In particular, the studying and following of Ho Chi Minh’s style has practical meaning which helps founding several good qualities for political cadres.
Fourth, building new and good cultural values and preventing the bad ones in each political cadre. At present, the adverse effect of the market economy as a result of the increasingly deep international integration, together with the sabotage of disruptive and hostile forces with cunning plots lead to the degradation in ethics and lifestyle of a number of cadres and party members, including the leading ones. For this reason, each party organisation, party member and political cadre should focus on enhancing cultural background of the Party. Facing the external and internal adverse impacts, cultural background will help party organizations, party members and political cadres exempt from the bad effects and counter-cultural practices from the society.
Implementing synchronously the above measures will contribute to building the leadership culture for the political cadres at grassroots units in current situation and enhancing their managing and commanding roles as raising cultural level in their operations.
Major, Doctor Nguyen Hong Diep, Political Academy