The Party Committee and the Command of the Signal Arm hold that Uncle Ho’s instructions are invaluable spiritual heritage and lodestar for every activity of the Arm during its process of building, fighting and maturity.

Being imbued with Uncle Ho’s instruction “You have done a good job, but should try harder and unceasingly improve your political, ideological knowledge and technical skills to ensure timely, accurate, secret, safe flow of information”, commanders at levels have considered it the central political task, so as to ensure timely, sustainable, secret and safe flow of information in any circumstances. Accordingly, each unit has taken appropriate measures to encourage soldiers’ activeness, proactiveness, creativeness, and a sense of responsibility, particularly those in the front line, such as on islands and remote and isolated areas. Over the past 5 years, upholding the spirit of self-reliance, the Arm has received and effectively exploited several fiber-optic cable lines, namely 1A, QB, QC, proactively set up horizontal connection among those lines, and developed branches down to 100% of military regions, corps, infantry divisions, Air Defence – Air divisions, Naval regions, Coast Guard regions, military commands of provinces and cities. Also, it has installed, managed and fixed 316 Visat stations on the Spratly Archipelago, Naval ships, at border guard posts, and deployed mobile information command vehicles.

As for the task of advancing straight to modernization, the Party Committee and the Command of the Arm hold that cadre staff is the “key” to every work, the decisive factor, thus it always pays attention to promote the role of this staff, particularly commanders, commissars, and political commissars, following the motto: the superiors do first, the n come the inferiors. The higher-level cadres, party members should be role models for the lower-level ones in studying and following Uncle Ho’s moral example. Many cadres in charge have become outstanding examples in morality and lifestyle, being active and proactive in their work. It can be said that all cadres of the Arm are always content with their job, abide by directives, commands and discipline, and strive to successfully fulfil all assigned tasks. In order to develop the manpower that could meet the demands in the new situation, the Party Committee of the Arm has requested schools to adjust their training goals and requirements to meet the target of building the modern Arm; to proactively innovate content, forms, teaching methodology, applying information technology and English language in teaching and learning.

Due to its specific tasks, very high requirements are required in all aspects of technical support. The Arm has focused on directing and managing all aspects of support work, ensuring smooth flow of communication in any situations. Moreover, it has directed units to promote the implementation of the Campaigns “Managing and exploiting weapons and technical equipment sustainably, safely, economically”, “Promoting the tradition, devoting talent, and deserving to be Uncle Ho’s Soldiers”, focusing on taking advantage of all resources, mastering advanced technology, and ensuring technical management and operation.

Following Uncle Ho’s instruction “Skillful mass mobilization lead to the success of all work”, over the past years, the Party Committee and the Command of the Arm have led and directed the task of mass mobilization at localities. Bringing into play the Campaign “The Army joins hands in building new rural area”, the Arm has taken practical and concrete actions, i.e. contributing to funds “Returning favour”, “Hunger eradication, poverty reduction”. Since 2011, the Arm has raised fund to build 73 gratitude houses and comradeship houses, present 67 saving accounts to beneficiaries of social welfare. It has taken care of 7 Vietnamese Heroic Mothers, established 6-billion funds for beneficiaries, and contributed nearly 60,000 working days and tens of billion Vietnamese dongs to build rural traffic infrastructure, schools, hospitals, water resources in localities. Those activities have further strengthened solidarity between people and troops, promoted virtues of “Uncle Ho’s Soldiers” and the image of “Elite Signal Soldiers”, and made contributions to maintaining political security, social order and safety, and building strong local political establishments, and safe units and areas.

It could be said that positive changes made by following Uncle Ho’s instructions are massive incentives for the Arm to successfully realize “The strategy to develop military communication system for 2011-2020 period” and bring the Signal Arm straight to modernization, making significant contributions to the cause of building the Army, strengthening national defence, and protecting the Homeland in the new situation.

Major General Ngo Kim Dong

Commissar of the Signal Arm