The majority of voters agreed and supported the abolition of the district level. However, when the district level is abolished, the commune level needs to be upgraded to undertake work on a larger scale, with heavier responsibilities.
That was the sharing of National Assembly Deputy Pham Van Hoa, Committee on Law and Justice of the National Assembly when discussing with Giao Thong Newspaper about the policy of eliminating intermediate administrative units.
National Assembly Delegate Pham Van Hoa.
Cost savings, smooth execution
According to Conclusion No. 126, the Politburo and the Secretariat assigned the Government Party Committee to preside over research on the orientation to continue to reorganize and eliminate intermediate administrative levels (district level); continue to reorganize the commune level in accordance with the new organizational model. In your opinion, what benefits will this bring?
The policy of merging some provinces and abolishing district-level administrative units has received the consensus and support of the majority of voters. General Secretary To Lam once spoke at the group discussion in the recent National Assembly session, 80% of countries have a 3-level government model, namely the central level, the provincial level, and the communal level.
Abolishing the district level will create a relatively larger space for socio-economic development without being limited to a certain district or county, creating a larger environment to attract potential and resources for development.
If the district level is eliminated, a step in decentralization and delegation of power will be eliminated. Then, decentralization and delegation of power will be done directly from the provincial level to the commune and ward levels, helping the management environment to be more open and convenient.
National Assembly Deputy Pham Van Hoa
Meanwhile, the district level in our country is an intermediate level and does not have a decisive role in socio-economic development issues. If this level is eliminated, it can help management be smooth from the provincial level to the commune level.
In my opinion, now is the right time to eliminate the middleman, but it must be done step by step and cannot be rushed, leading to low final efficiency.
There are opinions that the whole country has about 705 district-level administrative units. Each district has an average of about 150 to 200 officials, civil servants and public employees. Thus, it will be streamlined to more than 141,000 people and the State budget for the district will reduce by 20% of the budget for the annual management system. What is your assessment of this opinion?
I myself have also made such estimates. Each district level has an average of about 130 civil servant positions (not including public employees) while the whole country has more than 705 district-level administrative units, so the budget used to pay salaries for hundreds of thousands of people at this level is very large.
Where does the State budget come from? It is from the tax money of the people and businesses. People have to work hard to contribute to the State budget and pay salaries for the administrative apparatus. Thus, if the intermediate level is eliminated, the budget will be greatly reduced.
In addition to salary costs, we can also save on administrative costs and facility investment costs.
In addition to saving the budget, what advantages will the three-level government model, bypassing the district-level administrative unit, have, in your opinion?
Reducing intermediary levels can help streamline the administrative apparatus, reduce overlap and waste of resources.
Furthermore, eliminating the district level can help make State management more centralized and unified. Decisions at the provincial level will be implemented quickly and synchronously to the commune level.
Abolishing the district level can also help communes have more autonomy in deciding and implementing local issues, thereby helping communes promote their potential and advantages, and better meet people's needs.
In addition, when not limited by district-level administrative boundaries, socio-economic planning and development are carried out more comprehensively and effectively, allowing development projects to be implemented on a wider scale.
Accept change for future development
The benefits are clear, but in your opinion, when removing the district level, are there any issues that need attention?
The district level was established since the founding of the country and its abolition is unprecedented, so many problems will arise and it will be really difficult.
If the intermediate level, the district level, is eliminated, a step in decentralization and delegation of authority will be eliminated (illustrative photo).
This may be a certain disappointment at the moment, but in the future, we will have more budget to invest in development and social security, helping to improve people's lives.
After abolishing the district level, the distance between the provincial and communal levels is very far. Without appropriate arrangements and adjustments, it will be difficult for the provincial level to be close to the people.
Next, when the district level is abolished, there will be more than 140,000 redundant civil servants. Although some of the personnel can be arranged into the new apparatus, there will still be many people who will have to be streamlined.
Thus, it is necessary to calculate and propose the most optimal measures so that redundant cadres, civil servants and public employees enjoy the most suitable policies.
Besides, we also need to pay attention to the thoughts and aspirations of those who are sitting in civil servant positions receiving state salaries.
Furthermore, when removing the intermediate level, going from the provincial level to the commune level will initially be difficult because the responsibility of the provincial and commune leaders will be higher.
Strengthening staff at commune level
So, according to you, when the district level is abolished, how should the commune level be reorganized to suit the new organizational model?
In my opinion, first of all, we need to consolidate the commune levels to make them more compact. Currently, there are nearly 11,000 communes and although they have been merged many times, they are still very fragmented, with some communes having only 2,000 to 3,000 people, which I think is unreasonable.
In the era of 4.0 technology, with good communication infrastructure and convenient village roads, merging communes is appropriate.
After the merger, it is necessary to assign more tasks and decentralize more authority so that the commune level can carry out issues that are currently under the authority of the district level.
For example, in basic construction investment, the district is currently carrying out a number of tasks. So it is possible to calculate to assign large projects to the province, and small projects to the commune.
At the same time, it is necessary to increase personnel and staffing at the commune level so that they have enough capacity to manage all aspects such as: population, social security, social order and safety, new rural construction, etc.
Commune-level civil servants and public employees themselves also need to improve their capacity and qualifications to undertake work on a larger scale, with greater responsibilities.
Abolishing the district level without upgrading the commune level will leave a huge gap, significantly affecting the rights of the people.
For big cities like Hanoi or Ho Chi Minh City, should we consider specific factors or should we still apply the same as other provinces and cities, sir?
In my opinion, the two big cities of Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City are no exception, they really need to eliminate the intermediate level, which is the districts. In fact, eliminating the intermediate level in these two cities is easier than in other provinces and cities.
Because, although these two cities have large populations, the transportation infrastructure, communications and other conditions are very favorable. When an incident occurs, it only takes a short time for officials to be present.
What we need to pay most attention to is eliminating the district level in remote areas and mountainous areas because when we eliminate the intermediate level, many times provincial leaders will travel all day without reaching the commune.
In the long term, the budget savings from streamlining and eliminating intermediary levels can be used to upgrade information infrastructure in remote areas to improve administrative management.
Thank you!
On behalf of the Politburo, Standing member of the Secretariat Tran Cam Tu signed Conclusion No. 126-KL/TW dated February 14, 2025 of the Politburo and the Secretariat on a number of contents and tasks to continue to arrange and streamline the organization and apparatus of the political system in 2025.
In particular, there is a requirement to study the orientation to continue to arrange and eliminate intermediate administrative levels (district level); orientation to merge some provincial administrative units.
Develop a plan to continue to reorganize the commune level in accordance with the new organizational model, propose the organization of the apparatus, functions, tasks, powers and responsibilities of the commune level; Propose policies to amend and supplement relevant legal regulations and Party regulations, and report to the Politburo in the third quarter of 2025.
Assign the Central Public Security Party Committee to preside over and coordinate with relevant agencies and provincial and municipal Party Committees to lead and direct the implementation of the Project on organizing 3-level Public Security, without organizing district-level Public Security, ensuring the correct goals, requirements, and progress set out.
Source: https://www.baogiaothong.vn/bo-cap-huyen-can-nang-tam-cap-xa-192250227231834731.htm
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