People express their respect and condolences to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong

From 4am on July 25, people flocked to the following locations: National Funeral Home (No. 5, Tran Thanh Tong, Hanoi); Lai Da village, Dong Hoi commune, Dong Anh district, Thong Nhat Hall (Ho Chi Minh City)... to have the opportunity to burn incense to pay respect to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

The General Secretary's teacher: "I couldn't sleep all night..."

Early in the morning, Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Son, former lecturer of the Faculty of Literature at Hanoi University, went to the National Funeral House to see off his student Nguyen Phu Trong.

Mr. Son was a student of the first course of the Faculty of Literature at Hanoi University of Science. He was a lecturer assigned to accompany the 8th course of Literature, the course with student Nguyen Phu Trong who was evacuated to Dai Tu district, Bac Thai province (now Thai Nguyen) in 1965.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Son.

He emotionally shared: “I haven’t slept for the past few nights. For many months, I have been asking my former students about Mr. Trong’s health. When I heard the news of his death, I was shocked. Today, I went with the 8th grade literature class to say goodbye to Mr. Trong. We have lost a dearest friend of teachers and students.”

At 7:00 this morning, the General Secretary's classmates from the Literature Department, class 8, Hanoi University of Science met at the corner of Tang Bat Ho Street. Teacher Nguyen Ngoc Son was moved when he met his old students. From now on, in the meetings between teachers and students, there will no longer be his friend Nguyen Phu Trong.

Holding his teacher's hand, Mr. Phan Van Kinh said that the Literature Department, class 8, had registered in large numbers, but only 20 people were allowed to visit the General Secretary. Waiting with his fellow students, Mr. Kinh choked up and said: "I deeply mourn a fellow student who respected his teacher, respected his friends, was humble and simple like the General Secretary. Today, we just want to offer incense to send our friend to his final resting place."

At an advanced age and with poor health, Meritorious Teacher Tran Ngoc Thao (87 years old), former Principal of Hai Phong School of Culture and Arts, left Hai Phong early this morning to go to Hanoi to burn incense to pay respect to his friend.

Meritorious Teacher Tran Ngoc Thao (middle) with his fellow students and son visited the General Secretary.

According to Mr. Thao's memory, the General Secretary never had a distance with his fellow students. "We were very impressed with his saying: 'Money and fame are like fleeting clouds, friendship and human love are forever'. After speaking, he raised his arms as if to embrace us, very emotional. He came to us like someone from far away, he excitedly remembered the names of each friend, remembered the memories of school days, remembered the mischievous pranks.

Hearing the news of Mr. Trong’s passing, we were struck by lightning, our limbs were numb. With his passing, our fellow students lost a great friend, the Party and the people suffered a loss and an inconsolable sadness. From now on, class reunions will miss him. There are so many words to describe this loss. Those who remain will never forget his image. Mr. Trong is a model of a cultured person. When meeting him, we always see his affectionate smile, his harmony with both the people and international friends.

Mr. Nguyen Ngoc Son and his classmates from the Faculty of Literature, Class 8, Hanoi National University visited General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. (Photo: DUY LINH)

From afar, we have come to pay our respects to you, burn incense for the last time to send you off to the eternal world, and hope you can rest assured that the Party and the people will continue the path you have taken, and our country will certainly prosper. We are deeply saddened by the loss of our great friend,” said Uncle Thao, choking up.

Mr. Thao also read two verses of poetry to bid farewell to his friend:

“The brave stoker has gone far away

Alas for the spirit of the Northern scholars.

White hair aching for national affairs

A life of integrity, thrift and diligence…

In England, tears welled up in my eyes at the last minute.

Rest in peace in the eternal world.

The Party followed the path laid out by the British.

Together with the people to build a strong and rich country "

Thousands of people cried as they bid farewell to the General Secretary.

In Lai Da village, Dong Hoi commune, Dong Anh district (Hanoi), from early morning, thousands of people were present at the village cultural house to prepare for the funeral of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

Mr. Nguyen Van Tue, 93 years old this year, looked even older after the sadness and loss. Mr. Tue shared: For the past few nights, he could not sleep. After receiving the news of the General Secretary's passing, not only he but all the people of Lai Da were extremely sad. Early this morning, although he was weak, at 4 o'clock, Mr. Tue went alone with a cane to the funeral area when no one was there.

“Lai Da village gave birth to General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, a son who devoted himself to the country and the people. Therefore, we deeply miss him,” said a former party member of Lai Da village.

Mr. Nguyen Van Tue, this year is 93 years old.

Recalling the times the General Secretary visited Dong Hoi, Mr. Tue said: General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong was always close and simple.

“Every time he returned to his hometown, at the village gate, the General Secretary would get out of the car and walk, stopping by the houses of the village elders to ask about everyone's health,” he recalled.

Present in Lai Da, Mr. Vuong Khac Duy (83 years old) sat in an old wheelchair. Mr. Duy was a classmate of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong at Dong Hoi during the first 4 years of primary school.

Mr. Vuong Khac Duy (83 years old) sat in a wheelchair to visit the General Secretary.

Mr. Duy said: Hearing the news of his childhood friend's death, he was very sad. Therefore, this morning, he asked his son to take him to Lai Da village at 5 am to wait for his turn to pay his respects.

At 4:00 a.m. this morning, Ms. Doan Thi Ngoc Lan (65 years old, member of the Veterans Association of Vong Xuyen village, Phuc Tho district, Hanoi) walked out and stood waiting at the intersection of Tran Thanh Tong and Tran Hung Dao, her eyes turned towards the National Funeral Home.

Holding the phone in her hand, tears welling up in her eyes because of pity, Ms. Lan suppressed her grief and said: “I came down here yesterday to rent a room to come out early to line up to pay my respects to the General Secretary. I was there with my comrades at 4am. I really love the General Secretary because he served the people until his last breath. I still remember the heartfelt and emotional words of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong: 'If you are a flower, be a sunflower/If you are a bird, be a white dove/If you are a rock, be a diamond/If you are a person, be a communist!'.

I have many photos of the General Secretary in my camera. Every day I heard the news of his death, I cried. I just wish to see him off to his final resting place, to rest in peace forever,” Ms. Lan said.

Ms. Doan Thi Ngoc Lan (65 years old, member of the Veterans Association of Vong Xuyen village, Phuc Tho district, Hanoi) was choked up with tears.

Leaving Hai Phong at 3am for Hanoi, the family of Mrs. Nguyen Thi Muu (born in 1949) arrived very early at the beginning of Tran Thanh Tong Street. Mrs. Muu wiped her tears and said through sobs: “The General Secretary is a leader with a heart and vision for the country, devoted to the people, so for the past 3 days we have only been hoping to visit him. If we have to wait until the afternoon, I will wait.”

Ms. Bui Thi Thanh (67 years old, Muong ethnic group, Yen Thuy district, Hoa Binh), former Vice President of the Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, has just returned to Hanoi from Hoa Binh.

Silently looking at the words “Deeply mourning comrade Nguyen Phu Trong – General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam” in the funeral home, Ms. Thanh held back her emotions and shared that during her work, she had the opportunity to meet General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. The most impressive thing for Ms. Thanh was his close and affectionate image.

“During his work, he demonstrated a high level of democracy. He was attentive and caring towards ethnic minorities. Wherever he went, he was welcomed and loved by the people. When we heard of his death, we were very sad and felt a great loss that could never be recovered. His image, a model communist soldier, steadfast, resolute, but very close to the people, remains in each of us, cadres, and ethnic minorities.

People line up to pay their respects to the General Secretary at the National Funeral Home, 5 Tran Thanh Tong.

Comrade Nguyen Tien Hung, member of the Central Executive Committee of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, Deputy Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh Communist Youth Union, Chairman of the Vietnam Student Association of Hanoi City, shared: Upon hearing the news of the passing of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, many youth union members and young people in the capital have registered to attend the State funeral. More than 4,000 youth union members and students have registered.
Based on that wish, the Hanoi Youth Union has worked with the authorities to develop a plan to bring union members and young people to participate in activities serving the National Funeral. We have sent all these plans to coordinate with the Hanoi City Police, the Capital Command and other units to bring union members and young people to serve, guide the people, maintain security, order and traffic safety.

Free public service point.

For locations such as the National Funeral Home, Dong Anh District or Mai Dich Cemetery and some other locations, we arrange youth duty points, at these points will serve people free of charge with drinking water, snacks, as well as raincoats, fans... All these activities are carried out by the City Youth Union in a socialized manner. Volunteers will be divided into shifts, divided into teams to carry out tasks during the 2 days of National Mourning.

Youth Union members perform duties at the gate of the National Funeral Home.

And especially on the afternoon of July 26, when the General Secretary's funeral procession is held, volunteers will stand along the roads, coordinate with the authorities to maintain traffic safety and security, and together with the people, create a solemn and respectful atmosphere to send the General Secretary to his final resting place.

During his lifetime, the General Secretary had very good feelings for the youth of the whole country in general and the youth of Hanoi in particular. In addition, as the former Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee, the General Secretary also had good feelings for the youth of the capital. During this time, the youth of the capital expressed their own feelings, and the feelings of the youth of the capital, towards the General Secretary. From then on, they volunteered to participate in support activities during the State funeral, demonstrating the responsibility of the youth of the capital for the feelings that the General Secretary had for them.

Nhandan.vn

Source: https://nhandan.vn/nguoi-dan-bay-to-niem-kinh-trong-va-thuong-tiec-tong-bi-thu-nguyen-phu-trong-post820962.html#820962|home-highlight|2