Testament of President Ho Chi Minh is a historical document of great value to Party building, construction and defence of the socialist Vietnamese Fatherland. It shows comprehensively and deeply his life, morality, and style as a lifelong "servant of the Fatherland, the revolution, and the people." Thoroughly grasping that spirit, officers and soldiers of Vietnam People's Army (VPA) commit themselves to be "faithful to the nation, loyal to the Party, pious to the people" and heighten the revolutionary spirit to successfully accomplish assigned tasks.

50 years ago, after President Ho Chi Minh's death, our Party proclaimed the sacred testament that he left to our Party, people, and military. One of the fundamental, enduring, prominent contents in President Ho Chi Minh's testament is the ideology of "serving the class, serving the people, serving the Fatherland." That is also the goal and ideal of our Party as well as his aspiration throughout his revolutionary life.

"Who knows how long I can serve the revolution, serve the Fatherland, and serve the people," said President Ho Chi Minh at the beginning of his testament. It was his dying wish that cadres and party members must be always "faithful to the nation, loyal to the Party, pious to the people." That was thoroughly shown by his recommendations on the Party's roles and responsibilities to people in the testament, which read: "there needs to keep our Party truly pure, deserving to be the leader and truly faithful servant of the people." According to President Ho Chi Minh, faithfulness to the Party means that one spends his whole life following the Party's goals and ideals and striving for the revolutionary cause. Piousness to the people means taking people as the roots; caring for people's lives, feelings, and legitimate aspirations; and being ready to protect and serve the people. Faithfulness to the nation, loyalty to the Party, and piousness to the people is one of the fundamental contents of revolutionary ethics, which features lifelong sacrifice and striving for national independence and socialism; determination to struggle for the revolution; wholehearted support of the people; and self-sacrifice for the Party and people.

When writing about himself, he affirmed that "I serve the Fatherland, the revolution, and the people wholeheartedly throughout my life." His only burning ambition was how to make our country fully independent, our people completely free, and all our compatriots have means of subsistence and receive schooling. His dying wish was that "all our Party and people stand in solidarity to strive for building Vietnam into a peaceful, united, independent, democratic, and prosperous country, making worthy contribution to international revolution."

Given their deep-rooted feelings, respect, deep gratitude, and high political responsibility, officers and soldiers of the VPA are always committed to studying and realising the spirit of "faithfulness to the country, loyalty to the Party, piousness to the people" according to the testament of President Ho Chi Minh. It is the continuance and promotion of the nature and tradition of "Uncle Ho's soldiers" and willpower and determination of the whole Party, people, and military to fulfil his aspiration. "Faithfulness to the country, loyalty to the Party, piousness to the people" of our military is manifested in its absolute faithfulness to the goal of national independence along with socialism; in its readiness to sacrifice for national independence, freedom, and socialism; and in its close connection to the people. The VPA always maintains a close relationship with people, accomplishes every tasks, surmounts any difficulties, and defeats any enemies.

Officers and soldiers of the VPA have constantly resolved and tried to surmount a number of difficulties and challenges to successfully complete every missions assigned by the Party, the State and the people for nearly 75 years. During the two wars of resistance against the French colonialists and American imperialists, together with the whole Party and people, our military was steadfast and brave, regardless of sacrifice, to achieve glorious feats of arms and fulfil President Ho Chi Minh's sacred wishes "Our country will be definitely united, "Compatriots from the north and the south will definitely get together." In the cause of national construction and defence, the VPA's officers and soldiers are always a reliable, faithful political force and a powerful violent tool for protecting the Party, the State, the people, and the socialist regime and firmly maintaining national independence, sovereignty, and territorial integrity. Additionally, the VPA well performs their function as an army for combat, an army for propaganda, and an army for production; actively conducts training, exercises, and readiness; builds defence zones and operational plans; and improves combat power to firmly safeguard the Fatherland in any situations. Besides, the VPA successfully carries out propaganda work in order to encourage people to comply with guidelines of the Party and policies and law of the State; helps localities to establish political bases and develop economy, culture, and society; and assists people in hunger eradication and poverty alleviation, disaster prevention and management, and search and rescue. The whole military actively responds to campaigns, including "National day of the poor," "All people unite to build cultural life in residential areas," "Joint efforts to build new-style rural areas" among others. In addition, they participate in providing education and healthcare for people, especially the ethnic people in hinterland, remote areas, border areas, and islands. The VPA regularly carries out propaganda work to enable people to understand and resolutely counter incorrect allegations of the hostile forces aimed at speeding up "depoliticising" the VPA, sowing division and destroying the great national unity, and sowing division between people and the Party, the State, and the military. It also helps party committees and local authorities to deal with complex issues, "flashpoints," and ethnic, religious issues, making contribution to upholding political stability in stationing areas. 

Officers and soldiers of Thanh Hoa Border Guard Command helping people overcome the consequences of the No. 3 storm in 2019 (Photo: bienphong.com.vn)

Today, the cause of building the VPA, strengthening national defence, and protecting the Fatherland is placing new issues, which features intertwined opportunities, advantages, difficulties, and challenges. The hostile forces step up "depoliticising" and "civilising" the VPA through increasingly sophisticated, cunning plots. Adverse impacts of the market economy and negative phenomena in the society on the military become increasingly complex, which has influence on perception, ideology, and discipline of officers and soldiers. That has a great influence on the nature, traditions, goals, and ideals of "Uncle Ho's soldiers" - soldiers of the people. Therefore, strengthening of political education, leadership of ideology, and enhancement of awareness for officers and soldiers are a vital task today, in which continuing to grasp and study President Ho Chi Minh's testament on "faithfulness to the country, loyalty to the Party, piousness to the people" is the key. To do so, it is important to implement the following measures:

First, intensifying education in the nature, traditions, goals, and ideals of combat for the soldiers. This is a fundamental, enduring matter that dictates the revolutionary nature of "Uncle Ho's soldiers," laying the foundation for making the VPA politically strong and ceaselessly improve its integrated quality and combat power. The nature, traditions, goals, and ideals of combat serve as a flag that guides our officers and soldiers to overcome difficulties, challenges, hardships, and sacrifice to bravely fight and defeat any aggressors to safeguard national independence, freedom, and people's happiness. Acceleration of political education aims to make our military continue to bring into play its revolutionary nature, heroic tradition, and steadfastness in the goals and ideals chosen by our Party, Uncle Ho, and people; absolutely faithful to the Fatherland, the Party, and the people; well aware of its functions, missions, objects of struggle and objects of cooperation, and new requirements of national defence; and a faithful political force and powerful violent tool for protecting the Party, the State, the people, and the socialist regime. To achieve that goal, political education must be always reformed to closely associate with contents, programmes, learners, and realities of building the military and align education of basic issues with education of revolutionary nature and traditions of the Party, the people, the VPA, and units. Besides, it is important to step up studying and following Ho Chi Minh's ideology, morality, and style; the campaign "Promoting tradition, devoting talent, deserving to be Uncle Ho's soldiers," and the "Determination to fight, determination to win" movement, which serves to create cultural environments conducive to soldiers' striving, training, and development. On the basis of correct comprehension, officers and soldiers determine their political responsibilities to ceaselessly cultivate dignity of "Uncle Ho's soldiers"; actively train, strive, study, work, and make their units comprehensively strong; and are prepared to fight and sacrifice themselves to firmly defend the socialist Vietnamese Fatherland in any situations.

Second, building pure, strong party organisations in the military, on a par with requirements of missions. The Party's leadership is a determinant to preserve the revolutionary nature of our military, which helps to ensure our military's absolute faithfulness to the Fatherland, the Party, and the people as Uncle Ho's expectation. Consequently, it is important to well perform Party building in the Military Party Committee according to resolutions, directions, and instructions of the higher echelons and practical situations of party organisations; associate the building of strong party organisations in terms of politics, ideology, organisation, and ethics with the building of comprehensively solid units. There needs to focus on strengthening party organisations in conformity with developing the VPA in the adept, lean and highly efficient direction; to strictly promote good order and discipline; to seriously abide by the principle of democratic centralism; and to heighten self-criticism and criticism. Special importance is attached to inspection and oversight of the Party's discipline. The exemplary role of officers and soldiers are always brought into play. First of all, party executive committees must pay attention to making good preparations for party congresses at all levels and the coming 13th Party National Congress. The preparation of candidates for party executive committees must be paid sufficient attention to avoid electing people with desire of power, violation of dignity, ethics and lifestyle, and low prestige to party executive committees. There needs to concentrate on building a corps of cadres at all levels, especially the leading ones, according to Resolution 109-NQ/QUTW, dated 11 February 2019, of the Central Military Commission (CMC) on the development of a corps of military cadres, particularly those at operational and strategic levels, capable of meeting mission requirements in the new situation; associate the building of members of party executive committees with the building of leading cadres; heighten the exemplary role of cadres at all levels; and preserve unity and high consensus in party executive committees and party organisations.

Third, strengthening unity and strong attachment between the VPA and people, making the military and people have a common will. As our military comes from the people and fight for the people, it has no other goals except for protecting interests of the Party, the nation, and the people. Owing to its intimate relationship with people, the VPA continues to deliver strong growth in both humans and weaponry capable of defeating any enemies no matter how powerful and brutal they are. Under any circumstances, the VPA always unites with, respects, and share joys and sorrows with people; deals with difficulties and risks for the sake of people's comfort life and victories of the revolution. In light of requirements of new situations, the Party and the State continue to task the VPA with participating in hunger eradication and poverty alleviation mostly by means of establishing new economic zones, economic-defence zones, and residential areas along the borders, in the hinterland and remote areas and with playing the core role in, together with the whole people, defending the borders and affirming national sovereignty. The VPA continues to successfully carry our mass mobilisation by various new, creative means and forms, contributing to building a robust political system in key areas, assisting people in economic development, building new rural areas, disaster prevention and management, and search and rescue. When it is requested by local party executive committees, authorities, and people, the VPA is ready to undertake any missions in the spirit of "serving the people." Province- and district-level military organisations take initiative in collaborating with local agencies, departments, sectors, and unions to encourage people to strictly realise the Party's guidelines, the State's policies and law, and regulations of localities; take part in settling complicated disputes and lawsuits in localities in accordance with their functions and assigned missions, contributing to upholding political stability, social order and safety; and build a strong whole-people national defence and a solid "posture of people's hearts and minds." The VPA seeks to carry out practical activities and mass mobilisation to cultivate and bring into play the nature and traditions of "Uncle Ho's soldiers"; educate and train its officers and soldiers in political steadfastness, dignity, competence, and working style; and strictly maintain civil-military unity, making the image of the revolutionary military personnel always shine brightly in people's hearts.

Fourth, resolutely struggling against schemes and tricks to distort the nature and traditions, depoliticisation of the VPA, and manifestations of "self-evolution," and "self-transformation" within the Party. One of the hostile forces' acts of sabotage is to distort the revolutionary nature, "Uncle Ho's soldiers" dignity, and civil-military unity, thus undermining goals and ideals of combat and depoliticising the VPA on the pretext that the military is only faithful to the nation but it is not responsible for protecting and being loyal to the Party, the State, and the regime. Some people even say that, given its name "People's Army," the VPA is only tasked with defending the nation and the people. It does not have to be faithful to or protect the Communist Party of Vietnam and the socialist regime. Their true intention is to deprive the VPA of the Party's leadership, making it lose political direction, stay away from politics, and become a western-style professional military. In such context, it is important to be well aware of the hostile forces' plots and tricks and struggle to reject them. This reality requires party executive committees and party organisations to concentrate on resolute, effective leadership and instruction. First of all, there needs to put a great deal of effort in building a strong military, which possesses firm standpoints and is not influenced by acts of sabotage and provocation. At the same time, it is necessary to bring into play the role of the Steering Committee 35 at all levels in guiding the struggle against false positions. The force 47 of units needs to make further effort through writing articles to reject those positions keenly and in the right direction. Military newspapers, especially the People's Army Newspaper, the National Defence Journal, and the Military Radio and Television Broadcasting Centre, need to continue to reform and maintain columns on struggling against the hostile forces' schemes and acts of sabotage. Additionally, it is important to make organisations and units strong, particularly in politics and ideology; deal with manifestations of degradation in political ideology, morality and lifestyle, "self-evolution," and "self-transformation" without leaving the hostile forces any chances to create pretexts to damage the VPA.

Over 50 years of implementing Uncle Ho's testament, our military has firmly upheld its revolutionary nature, fighting spirit, absolute "faithfulness to the nation, loyalty to the Party, piousness to the people"; brought into play its core role in strengthening national defence; been ready to undertake and successfully accomplish all missions tasked by the Party, the State, and the people.

Senior Lieutenant General Nguyen Trong Nghia,

Member of the Party Central Executive Committee,

Member of the Central Military Commission,

Deputy Director, General Political Department, Vietnam People's Army