On March 27^th, 1951, the Ministry of National Defence issued the decision to establish the Artillery Division 351 at My Lam commune, Yen Son district, Tuyen Quang province, including the Political Office - precursor of the present-day Political Department of the Artillery Corps as one of its competent agencies. The 27^th of March is also the Traditional Day of the Artillery Corps’ Political Department. Since its inception, the Political Department has always promoted its role in counselling, directing, and inspecting the party work and political work. It is worth noting that the work of giving advice on the building of a pool of cadres has contributed to the Corps’ successful accomplishment of all assigned missions.

The Political Department’s Party Committee (2020-2025 tenure)

Clearly understanding the importance of cadres and the building of a contingent of cadres, the Political Department has advised the Corps’ Party Committee Standing Board to focus on closely and seriously leading the personnel work in accordance with higher echelons’ resolutions, directives and instructions, especially the Personnel Strategy in the period of accelerating national industrialisation and modernisation. The principle according to which the Party leads the personnel work and manages cadres has been stringently maintained. All matters relating to cadres and the personnel work have been carefully prepared by all-level party committees, democratically discussed, and decided by a majority. Each step of the personnel work has always been seriously, fairly, and objectively taken. As a result, the Corps has built up a pool of cadres both qualitatively and quantitatively. A majority of cadres and soldiers have shown their firm political will and absolute loyalty to the Party, the Fatherland and the People, and remained steadfast in Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh's ideology, while being able to thoroughly grasp and implement the Party's guidelines and regulations, the State's policy and law, and higher echelons’ directives and resolutions.

From the recorded achievements, the Political Department has withdrawn several valuable lessons to continue giving sound advice to the Corps’ Party Committee Standing Board on synchronously, effectively leading the building of a contingent of cadres at all levels on a par with their task requirements.

Firstly, raise the awareness and responsibility of all-level party committees, party organisations, and key cadres towards the personnel work and the building of a pool of cadres. The Department has counselled the Corps’ Party Committee Standing Board to direct all-level party committees and commanders to well carry out the work of propaganda and education so that all cadres and party members would grasp directives and resolutions by the Party and the Central Military Commission, the Corps’ Party Committee on the personnel work. As a result, all staff members have been fully aware that cadres would play decisive role in the success of the revolution, and that the personnel work would be the "key" stage of the building of the Corps and its Party Organisation. The building of a pool of cadres, especially the leading ones at all levels, is the most important task of the Corps that must be conducted regularly, carefully, scientifically, and efficiently under the Party’s direct, comprehensive leadership. This is a very important lesson drawn by the Corps in its 70 years of building a contingent of cadres. Moreover, each party committee, party organisation, and leader have raised their responsibility and strengthened their leadership over the building of a contingent of cadres in accordance with the Party’s instructions and resolutions. At the same time, emphasis has been placed on directing party committees at all levels to strictly implement the Regulation 18-QC/ĐU, dated September 25^th, 2020 by the Corps’ Party Committee on leading the personnel work in order to meet the requirements set by the building of a revolutionary, regular, elite, and gradually modern Artillery Corps.

Secondly, attach importance to improving the quality of cadre assessment. Correct evaluation of cadres’ capability is of importance to the planning, training, retraining and use of cadres. Incorrect assessment will cause wrong assignment, lead to many other consequences, and affect the Corps’ task performance. Therefore, the Political Department has recommended the Corps’ Party Committee Standing Board to regularly renew and improve the work of cadre assessment, with a focus on reviewing, supplementing and completing specific criteria as the basis for evaluating cadres, especially commanding officers in an objective, comprehensive, dialectic and scientific manner. In this regard, significance has been attached to using cadres’ task performance and the credibility gained from the masses as the yardstick for measuring their quality and capacity. The Department has advised the Corps’ Party Committee Standing Board on encouraging cadres to surmount difficulties, dare to think, dare to do and dare to take responsibility. At the same time, due attention has been paid to inspecting all-level party committees’ implementation of "two-way evaluation" mechanism and receiving annual feedback  on cadres from collectives and mass organisations in a democratic, public fashion.

Thirdly, concentrate on building a pool of cadres with sufficient quantity, reasonable structure, and high quality to meet the task requirements. Adhering to the goal of building a contingent of cadres, the Corps Command’s organisational structure, and the plan to deal with the number of cadres in each period, the Political Department has given advice to the Corps’ Party Committee Standing Board on resolving the balance of cadres according to their positions for each year, calculating the number of retired cadres on a yearly basis, and developing plans to supplement new cadres.

Currently, the Political Department is helping and directing party committees at all levels to synchronously implement the 5-year (2021 - 2025) plan and the 2021 plan on the quantity of cadres in accordance with reality. Accordingly, party committees at all levels are focusing on formulating and periodically reviewing personnel plans, promptly excluding cadres with the poor task performance or a lack of criteria from the plans, and opportunely including cadres who are qualified, well trained and experienced in the plans. In the planning process, great value has been attached to strictly conforming to procedures, ensuring democracy and openness, and maintaining solidarity, inheritance, development, and continuous, steady transition between generations of cadres while the method of "flexible" and "open"  planning has been employed. Accordingly, each position will be occupied by 2 successors and 3 or more potential cadres. Each cadre is planned for different positions and the generation gap is from 3 to 5 years old. The planning of personnel has always been associated with the planning of party committee members at all levels, ensuring correctness and fairness.

The Department has directed the Personnel Office to frequently grasp the organisational structure, quantity, and quality of artillery cadres across the entire armed forces in order to present reports to the Corps’ Party Committee and Command so that they would advise the Ministry of National Defence on the proper number of artillery cadets to be trained and used to meet the task requirements.

Fourthly, give advice on renewing the training and retraining of cadres. Closely following the viewpoints, objectives, tasks and solutions identified in the resolutions and directives by the Central Military Commission and the Corps’ Party Committee, the Political Department has directed and helped party committees at all levels to synchronously execute plans on training and retraining cadres for every 5 years and each year. It has also proactively developed plans for training and retraining cadres both at home and abroad. Importance has been attached to organising in-service training courses, especially for newly graduated officers or those who would be appointed. The training of cadres has been conducted via practical work. More experienced officers have been required to assist the less ones while superiors have been asked to train their inferiors. Besides, the spirit of self-studying and self-researching has been encouraged amongst cadres. The results of training and retraining have been aligned with the selection, appointment and promotion of cadres. Another important solution in education and training is to accelerate the execution of the 12^th Politburo's Directive 05-CT/TW in tandem with the implementation of 12^th Party Central Committee’s Resolution No.4 on the Party building and rectification, the Determination to Win Emulation Movement, and the Campaign entitled “promoting, tradition, dedicating talent, deserving to be Uncle Ho's soldiers" in the new period. Due regard has been paid to regularly improving the material and spiritual life of cadres, creating a favorable condition for staff members to keep their mind on their work, and ensuring sufficient policies and entitlements during adjustments in the organisational structure or for cadres who would be discharged from the Military.

Fifthly, build strong personnel agencies and cadres in charge of the personnel work both qualitatively and quantitatively to fulfil all assigned tasks. Cadres who are selected to be in charge of the personnel work must possess strong political will, good ethical qualities and professional qualifications, while showing their scientific, thorough, cautious, specific, meticulous, honest, objective, and fair working method.  Therefore, the Political Department’s Party Committee and Command require that each cadre and employee in charge of the personnel work must always uphold a sense of responsibility and dedication to the work and keep improving their qualifications and capabilities. Those staff members must maintain professional principles and discipline and enhance their capabilities in analysing and assessing the situation, undertaking researches and giving advice on the personnel work. In addition, close coordination with relevant functional units and agencies in performing tasks must be maintained while inspections and supervisions must be strengthened to resolutely fight against negative practices in the personnel work.

Col. BUI NGOC TUYEN, Chief of the Political Department of the Corps