Policy work concerning the People’s Army and military families is an important content, which contributes to creation of a huge driver of building the People’s Army, strengthening national defence, and firmly safeguarding the Fatherland. This is also a key political task that receives great attention and leadership from the Party Committee and commanders of the Policy Department. The building of a robust unit for successful performance of tasks is the most important content.

Over the past few years, under the leadership of the Central Military Commission (CMC) and Ministry of National Defence (MND), notably the General Department of Politics (GDP), as well as the attention, assistance, and close coordination of levels, branches, units, localities, and people nationwide, the Policy Department has successfully performed its assigned functions and missions. It has closely monitored situations and mission requirements of building the People’s Army and protecting the Fatherland to actively and proactively research, propose, and instruct good implementation of policies on the military and military families.

More importantly, in 2022, the Policy Department presided over researching, drafting, and submitting documents on the implementation of policies on active-duty military personnel to higher levels for promulgation. It actively studied and improved the draft of proposal for special allowance for the armed forces and cipher officers according to Resolution No. 27-NQ/TW, dated 21 May 2018, of the Party Central Committee (12th tenure) on reforming salary policies for cadres, civil servants, public employees, armed forces, and labourers in businesses. The Policy Department proactively proposed promulgation of documents guiding the implementation of policies for people working in areas of extremely difficult socio-economic condition as well as for people made redundant by dissolving the MND’s vocational colleges; advised leaders of the MND and GDP to timely issue plans and documents guiding implementation of policies on military families, gratitude activities, and policy activities on the 75th anniversary of the War Invalids and Martyrs Day; actively carried out post-war welfare policies as well as policies for people being wounded or laying down their lives during execution of military, defence missions; proposed and instructed the search and collection of martyrs’ remains.

Gen. Phan Van Giang, Minister of National Defence, and leader of Binh Dinh province present gifts for families of policy

In the coming time, realising the Party’s and State’s guidelines on social policies, reform of policies on salary and social security as well as reorganising the People’s Army in an adept, compact, strong, modern direction according to resolutions and directives of the Party, CMC, and MND will lay down increasingly high requirements for industries and sectors in general and policy work in particular. To successfully accomplish missions, the Policy Department Party Committee and commanders focus on building a strong unit and promoting work quality through the following solutions.

First, paying constant attention to the building of pure, robust Party Committee in connection with making the unit comprehensively strong. This is key to successful implementation of the Policy Department’s political tasks because the leadership capacity of party committees and organisation as well as the exemplary role of cadres and party members are always the deciding factor. The Policy Department Party Committee and commanders, therefore, regularly attach importance to building and strengthening of party committees at all levels in terms of quantity and quality; promote management, education, and training of cadres and party members, especially in political, ideological, organisational, and moral aspects; step up studying and following Ho Chi Minh’s ideology, morality, and style as well as resolutions and directives on Party building and rectification, the campaign of promoting tradition, devoting talent, deserving to be “Uncle Ho’s Soldiers” in the new situation, and Resolution No. 847-NQ/QUTW of the CMC. The Policy Department Party Committee and commanders strictly maintain regulations on party meetings; regularly renew leadership content and methodologies; promote democracy and intelligence in formulating and realising resolutions; focus on making breakthroughs in compliance with law of the State, military discipline, rules and regulations of the unit, thereby making party committees and organisations constantly pure, strong, and representative, enabling them to be the core actors in political leadership and building of comprehensively strong, exemplary, representative units.

Second, developing a corps of cadres and party members with dignity and competence on a par with requirements of both short- and long-term missions. Over the past few years, the Policy Department Party Committee and commanders have attached special importance to leadership and establishment of solidarity and successful leverage of cadres’ and party members’ responsibility, proactiveness, creativeness, and efforts to complete assigned tasks excellently. Nevertheless, in the face of developments of missions in the new situation, the building of the cadre corps with fine dignity and professional skills is a vital issue that decides quality of performing political tasks and development of the Department. Given this appreciation and on the basis of inheriting and bringing into play achievements, the Policy Department Party Committee takes initiative in developing plans and regularly reviewing and strengthening organisations in accordance with their titles and staffing; strictly implements annual plans to cut down on cadres; promotes education and training of cadre corps in terms of both political ideology, morality, knowledge, skills, and working style. Attention is paid to leading cadres and cadres in charge of research and recommendation. The Policy Department Party Committee actively and proactively finds sources on cadres and asks the higher echelons to appoint them to posts in the Department; sends cadres to training sources at academies and units to get practical experience. It seeks to strictly adhere to principles and procedures for evaluating, appointing, and using cadres in order to ensure unanimity, objectiveness, and justice. These are basic measures to cultivate a corps of cadres and party members with political steadfastness and sensitiveness as well as ability to research, advise, concretise, and coordinate implementation of policies and on a par with mission requirements.

Third, closely following requirements, missions, and practical situations to proactively study, recommend, and carry out policies on the military, military families, and gratitude activities. This is a key political task and a measure of the Department’s task performance. The Policy Department Party Committee and commanders, therefore, request its party committees, party organisations, cadres, and party members to further grasp and well implement the Party’s guidelines and viewpoints and the State’s policies and law with a focus on studying and proposing policies on the military and military families as well as special policies. More specifically, there needs to study, propose, and instruct implementation of policies for those on active duty and renunciation of service, especially the policies for those influenced by reorganisation of the People’s Army and working in strategic areas, remote areas, hinterlands, border areas, at sea, on islands, and in foreign countries. Policies for people, who were wounded or laid down their lives during performance of military, defence missions, are to be realised timely. It is important to conduct further research aimed at improving content and proposing formulation of policies on special allowance for the armed forces and cipher officers according to the Resolution No. 27-NQ/TW of the Party Central Committee (12th tenure); study and propose measures to facilitate implementation of policies and enable families of cadres, non-commissioned officers, workers, and defence employees to settle down in the new situation; instruct good implementation of policies on military families, people with meritorious services to the revolution, and people participating in the wars of resistance, the wars to safeguard the Fatherland, and international missions; step up gratitude activities as well as the search, collection, and identification of martyrs’ remains.

Finally, establishing scientific, democratic, united, disciplined working styles and methods that strictly adhere to working principles, rules, and regulations. Scientific working methods and styles reflect high purposefulness and good organisation; impact every practical activity of each cadre and employee, especially in research, proposal, and anticipation of situations. Good execution of this measure is both a matter of principle and a requirement, which serves to promote working effectiveness of the cadre corps. Accordingly, during the implementation process, the corps of cadres must stick to plans; give prominence to proactiveness and creativeness; dare to think, dare to do, and dare to assume responsibility; cultivate scientific, close, meticulous working methods and styles; bring into play proactiveness, sensitivity, creativeness, and dedication to work; struggle against any signs of bureaucracy, conservatism, sluggishness, subjectivity, impatience, and simplification in leading and performing missions. It is also necessary to promote military administrative reform, application of information technology to the management and storage of files and documents; establish a pure, healthy, exemplary, representative cultural environment within the Department; work closely with other departments and units to leverage the overall power in proposing policies, ensuring accuracy, rightness, and effectiveness.

Facing requirements and missions to build the People’s Army in the new situation, to bring into play the traditions of a heroic unit, cadres, employees, and soldiers of the Policy Department make every effort to train themselves and complete all assigned tasks, thereby together with the entire Party, people, and military, successfully implementing policies of the Party and State for the military and military families, creating drivers and confidence in the victory of building and firmly protecting the socialist Vietnamese Fatherland.

Major General DOAN QUANG HOA, Director  of the Policy Department