Military Region 7 is stationed in the area of strategic importance in the realms of politics, economics, culture, science and technology to the South and the whole country. In recent years, the Military Region’s task has witnessed developments resulted from the increasingly higher requirements of national protection. Accordingly, its demand for technical service has increased in quantity and quality. Meanwhile, basically its weapons and equipment were manufactured and preserved for ages, many types of which were deployed in wars and international missions. Technical facilities have been upgraded but yet to meet the requirements. Technical equipment has yet to be innovated in accordance with practice. The Technical Sector’s structure is still inappropriate. Cadres and technicians’ capability in grass-root units is still limited, particularly in exploitation and use of hi-tech weapons and equipment. Meanwhile, the Military Region is stationed in the area having diversified, complex terrain and severe climate with unpredictable developments. The work of ensuring safety for its depot and factory belt is confronted with increasing difficulties due to high population density, increasingly heavy traffic, etc. Those have considerably impacted on the Military Region’s implementation of technical work.
To improve the quality of technical work, the Party Committee and Managing Board of the Technical Department under the Military Region identify: it is necessary to well perform the core role in counselling the Military Region’s Party Committee and High Command to effectively carry out the technical work, meeting the requirements set by the tasks of training and combat readiness, and other relevant tasks, while continuing to direct and step up the implementation of the Campaign “efficient, sustainable, safe, economical management and exploitation of weapons and technical equipment, and traffic safety”; to build the structure of the Technical Sector in the elite, lean, strong, unified direction; to develop the cadre and technician staff, and redress the imbalance among professions and ages.
Grounded in that guideline, the Technical Department has counselled the Military Region’s Party Committee and High Command to lead and direct units and localities to speed up the building of technical regularity. Due attention has been paid to upgrading the system of depots, stations and factories. It has selected the High Command of Long An province, the 5th Division, the 26th Tank and Armour Brigade, and the 1st Regiment under the High Command of Ho Chi Minh city as comprehensively strong technical examples. To carry out the technical work uniformly, the Department has drawn up and standardized the system of documents guiding units, such as the Order on Technical Work, the Annual Plan for Technical Work, guidance on developing and complementing operational documents of the Sector, while closely working with agencies, units and localities to monitor the progress of technical projects in the 2017-2021 period. In the face of limited budget for technical work, the Department has counselled the Military Region’s Party Committee and High Command to invest in building technical facilities on a focalized basis and focus on upgrading the system of weapon and equipment shelters, the lightning protection system, the fire protection system, etc., according to the standards of the Ministry of National Defence. Priority has been given to innovating technology and planning the system of technical stations and factories of the Military Region and localities for long-term goals; to building the system of district-level depots to ensure reserve and provision of weapons and technical equipment for on-the-spot forces as its function. Simultaneously, it has directed agencies and units to counsel local party committees and governments to deduct part of local budget for construction and upgradation of depots, garages, artillery garages, and equipment for preserving guns on a basic, uniform, synchronous, standard basis in line with force disposition and projects of defensive operations of the Military Region. Up to now, all communes, wards, towns, and units are equipped with gun cabinets, and most of districts have depots of weapons and ammo. Moreover, the Department has directed technical agencies, localities and units to complete the system of records, templates, and diagrams for management, registration and stocktaking according to regulations. Most of agencies, localities and units have applied computer-based programs for management of weapons and equipment, thus helping control weapons and equipment closely, accurately, rapidly. Localities and units’ work of receiving, distributing, withdrawing, shifting, managing and evaluating weapons and equipment has been carried out in a “standard, uniform, safe” manner. The quality of technical support has gradually improved. Technical facilities’ annual norms for repair, maintenance, labelling, reserve of weapons and equipment always reach 100%-105% of the plan. Over the past years, the Military Region’s Technical Sector has successfully conducted the work of technical support for units to take part in battalion and regiment level live fire, field training exercises. Full-strength units and those on combat readiness and air-defence duty, and stationed in border and islands always maintain the technical coefficient of weapons and equipment from 0.95 to 1.0.
In the face of a dearth of technician staff, the imbalance between professions, groups and ages, and their limited capability, the Party Committee and Managing Board of the Technical Department under the Military Region have proactively counselled commanders at levels to build and develop the technical staff. Emphasis has been placed on building politically strong technical staff, gradually standardizing qualification, and developing leading workers and technicians at both Military Region and grass-roots levels. At the same time, the Technical Department has directed technical agencies to review and assess the quality of technical staff at all levels, and draw up training plans in conformity to the regulations and procedure; to diversify the method of training cadres, combine dispatch of cadres to study in universities at home and abroad with retraining, on-site training, supplementary training, and technical drills to improve cadres and technicians’ knowledge comprehensively. Besides, great importance should be attached to studying and formulating policies and entitlements for cadres and technicians, particularly top ones, while regulations on transfer and rotation of cadres and technicians at all levels, in all positions and areas have been seriously maintained to create favourable conditions for them to develop their full potential and keep their mind on their work. In 2017, the Military Region’s Technical Sector sent 7 cadres to study in the Military Technical Academy, received 88 training cadets from Tran Dai Nghia University, and cooperated with the Military Region’s Military School in training 105 technician cadets.
To develop professional competence of the technical staff, the Department has proactively worked with functional agencies to step up innovation of programs and forms of technical training according to the Resolution 765 by the Central Military Commission and its specialized resolution on units’ training work. Units have followed the motto “basic, practical, strong” in technical training, combining theory with practice, taking the latter as the main one, focusing on necessary contents relevant to groups of learners, particularly to commanders and technicians. Special importance has been attached to educating the Regulations and Guidance on technical work in the Vietnam People’s Army, the Regulations on technical staff work, knowledge and skills of management and exploitation of weapons and equipment, etc. Moreover, the Military Region’s Technical Sector has held training in fire and explosion prevention and control as well as use of explosive equipment, technical level-raising contests for drivers and technicians, and technical competitions from grass-roots levels to Military Region level, while taking part in army-wide competitions and achieving good results.
Advocating that human plays a decisive role in the quality of technical work, the Party Committee and Managing Board of the Technical Department have directed technical offices at levels to step up the work of political and ideological education to raise troops’ awareness of weapon and equipment management and use. To this end, due attention has been paid to promoting role and responsibility of party committees and commanders at levels as well as cadres and troops in the implementation of technical tasks. The “proactive, creative, self-reliant” spirit has been heightened. The successful implementation of the Campaign 50 has created a driving force for the improved quality and efficiency of technical work. At the same time, research, technical innovation, and application of science and technology to technical support have been stepped up. Expense, materials and fuel have been effectively, economically used and exploited. Units have stepped up inspecting, reviewing and evaluating the implementation of technical work, Campaign 50, emulation and rewarding work, while building and multiplying typical examples and “good people with good deeds” in the realm of technical support for people to study and follow.
Promoting the spirit of self-reliance, dynamism, creativity, proactiveness, cleverness, unity, cadres, party members, soldiers and employees of the Military Region 7’s Technical Sector will strive to successfully fulfil all assigned tasks and make contribution to enhancing the aggregate quality and combat strength of the Military Region’s armed forces, meeting the requirements of military and defence tasks in the area.
Snr. Col. Nguyen Van Thanh, Director of the Technical Department of the Military Region 7