Political education for officers and soldiers is one of the important contents, creating a basis for improving the overall quality and fighting power of the entire army. That is also the key task that the Party Committee and the Navy Region 2 Command focus on leading and directing with many synchronous policies and solutions, contributing to improving political bravery, revolutionary ethics, and cooperation. The working style and practical operational capacity of officers and soldiers deserve to be the core force in protecting the sovereignty of the sea, islands, and southern continental shelf of the Fatherland.

Currently, the task of protecting the sovereignty of the sea, islands, and continental shelf of the Fatherland in general, and the southern sea in particular, poses new and higher requirements. Meanwhile, hostile and reactionary forces continue to promote plots and activities of "peaceful evolution", promoting "self-evolution", "self-evolution" and "depoliticisation" of the Military. The negative sides of the market economy and social evils are affecting the thought and sentiment of officers and soldiers. Troops of the Region operate in a wide area under extreme weather conditions, and face many dangers given the unpredictable factors in the security situation at sea, etc. Therefore, in order to successfully complete the assigned tasks, the Region continues to promote political education for subjects with many synchronous and appropriate solutions, serving as a basis for building a politically strong Unit, contributing to improving the overall quality, combat strength, meeting the requirements and tasks in the new situation.

First of all, the region focuses on promoting the role of leadership and direction of party committees, political commissars, politicians and commanders at all levels for political education. Accordingly, deeply grasping the directives, resolutions and projects on political education work of higher echelons, the Party Committees and party cells of agencies and units in the entire region actively elaborate thematic resolutions and regular leadership resolutions with short, concise, clear and practical contents. Political commissars, junior political commissars, and commanders at all levels, base on their responsibilities and tasks, develop plans for implementation; strengthen leadership, direction, inspection, and review, as a basis for evaluating the results of political education. Moreover, due attention is paid to training, fostering, and improving pedagogical skills for the teaching staff and investing in equipment to meet the increasing requirements of this important work. During the implementation, it promotes the responsibilities of political agencies and political cadres; enhances the effectiveness of unit commanders. In addition, party committees of agencies and units closely combine political education with ideological work; promote positive factors to push back negativity; strictly maintain the regime and order of managing, classifying, monitoring and reporting on the situation of the troop’s sentiment, contributing to preventing and repelling the deterioration in political thought, morality and lifestyle of the cadres, party members, and the masses.

It has been shown in practice that the effectiveness of political education depends largely on the qualifications, capacity, qualities and ethics of the persons conducting it. Therefore, improving the all-round quality of political teachers at grassroots units is crucial. To realise this content, agencies and units regularly pay attention to consolidating and perfecting their political teachers in both quantity and quality. In particular, attention is paid to fostering and improving political teaching capacity and pedagogical skills, etc. Training is carried out in many forms with an aim to build the political teaching staff in the Region with good qualities and capabilities, who always master the process of teaching, i.e. preparing lecture, teaching, discussing, testing and evaluating, and are able to flexibly apply many forms and methods in teaching, meeting the increasing goals and requirements of political education in the new situation.

Although the quality of political education is achieved by the combination of different factors, the core ones are still the content, form and method of teaching. Therefore, to improve the quality of this work, it is important that those factors are always innovated. To make it effective, the Political Department of the Region proactively researches and firmly grasps the directives, resolutions, projects, and instructions of higher echelons as a basis for advising the Regional Party Committee and Command on promulgating resolutions and plans for implementation with scientific, creative, and appropriate solutions; directing units to develop accurate and appropriate political education plans; regularly inspecting, urging and thoroughly overcoming weak points and areas. Basing on the learning materials issued by the General Department of Politics, its units research and develop annual political education plans with sufficient content and foci. As far as the content is concerned, in addition to the basic political education contents, agencies and units compile thematic topics on the situation and tasks of the Navy, the Region and its units; topics on the seas and islands, etc. Before each task, especially the unexpected ones relating to the protection of the sovereignty of the sea and islands, ... political agencies actively compile documents and conduct briefing to make awareness orientation, recommend course of action, and build strong will and determination for its troops. This is aimed at raising awareness of its officers and soldiers about the Party's views and guidelines; missions of the Military, the Navy, the Region, and the units; nurture their political courage, ethics, healthy lifestyle, and sense of self-disciplining; fostering their faith, pride, and national self-respect; encourage officers and soldiers to enthusiastically emulate, show willingness to accept and complete all assigned tasks well.

Developing the political qualities of each soldier in general, and officers and soldiers of the Region in particular, is an elaborate, continuous and persistent educational process in which the coordination of organisations and forces conducting political education work plays a significant role. First of all, it is the premise and core role in advising, directing, organising, guiding, and strictly maintaining the regularity of political education work of political agencies at all levels. The responsibility of the command system at all levels, mass organisations, and the Military Council in educating, training, orienting awareness, ideology, and guiding actions for the soldiers is a prerequisite. Coordination between agencies and units with party committees, local authorities and military families plays a complementary role. Accordingly, the political office of the Region proactively advises, guides and directs its agencies and units to thoroughly study the guiding documents and evaluate the results of political education exactly as a basis to learn from experience, overcome weaknesses, and further improve the quality of political education. The command system at all levels strictly maintains the unit's operating regime according to the provisions of command, ensuring the connection between political education, human management and maintaining strict observance of Military discipline and State law for the safety of the unit. Mass organisations and the Military Councils integrate political education content into monthly action programs and implement in a serious manner, thereby making this work increasingly effective.

At the same time, it enhances the management, inspection, review and evaluation of results; pays attention to investing, managing and using equipment and facilities, contributing to promoting the improvement of political education, serving as a basis for building an all-strong Region, especially in political aspect, creating motivation to successfully complete the task of firmly protecting the sovereignty of the southern sea, islands, and continental shelf of the country.

Senior Colonel DO HONG DUYEN, Political chief of the Region