Speech by General Secretary To Lam at the 9th Golden Hammer and Sickle Awards Ceremony

On the evening of January 20, at Ho Guom Theater, Hanoi, General Secretary To Lam and leaders, former leaders of the Party and State, and delegates attended the 9th National Press Award Ceremony on Party Building (Golden Hammer and Sickle Award) - 2024. The World and Vietnam Newspaper respectfully introduces the speech of General Secretary To Lam at the Award Ceremony.

General Secretary To Lam, leaders and former leaders of the Party and State and delegates perform the flag-saluting ceremony. (Source: VNA)

“Dear Leaders, former Leaders of the Party, State, Vietnam Fatherland Front, Leaders of central and local departments, ministries and branches,

Dear veteran journalists, leaders, reporters, editors and workers in press agencies,

Dear comrades and countrymen!

Today, in the exciting atmosphere of the whole country entering the new year 2025 and the whole Party, the whole people, and the whole army are enthusiastically competing towards the 95th anniversary of the founding of the Communist Party of Vietnam, I am very pleased to attend the Closing Ceremony and awarding of the 9th National Press Award for Party building named "Golden Hammer and Sickle" - 2024.

This is a particularly meaningful event to acknowledge and honor the great contributions of the revolutionary press in the work of Party building and rectification. On behalf of the Party and State leaders and with my personal feelings, I would like to send you my warm greetings, my warm regards and my best wishes on the occasion of the New Year.

Dear comrades!

In 2025, Vietnam's revolutionary press will turn 100 years old - an important milestone, marking the glorious historical journey of revolutionary press accompanying the birth, growth and development of the Communist Party of Vietnam.

During that process, under the leadership of the Party, first and foremost President Ho Chi Minh, the Vietnamese revolutionary press has always been the core force, playing a pioneering role on the ideological-cultural front, making great contributions to the revolutionary cause of the Party and the country.

In particular, the team of revolutionary journalists wrote about the Party with all their feelings, responsibilities, and enthusiasm; not only reflecting reality but also arousing trust, responsibility, and contributing to creating consensus among the whole society under the leadership of the Party.

The National Press Award on Party building named “Golden Hammer and Sickle” was born and developed to recognize and honor the role and great contributions of revolutionary press. Through 9 times of organization, the Award has increasingly affirmed its prestige, stature and demonstrated the professional maturity and political mettle of the team of professional and non-professional journalists writing about the topic of Party building.

Journalists have truly taken on responsibility and integrated themselves into the work of building and rectifying the Party and the political system, reflecting and analyzing in a very diverse and rich way all aspects of Party building work, in all types of grassroots party organizations, throughout the country.

General Secretary To Lam speaks at the 9th Golden Hammer and Sickle Award Ceremony - 2024. (Source: VNA)

Dear comrades!

I am very pleased to know that the 9th National Press Award on Party Building - 2024 continues to achieve outstanding results in both quantity and quality. This is demonstrated through the positive and proactive response of press agencies, associations, and branches of journalist associations, along with the enthusiastic participation of many authors and author groups from central to local levels.

This year's entries are not only rich in content but also demonstrate meticulous investment and creativity in form, reflecting comprehensively and with a focus on key issues of Party building. Many entries have boldly addressed major, complex, and urgent issues of the country, Party building, and the political system.

The press has truly affirmed its pioneering role by promptly condemning negative behaviors and uncompromisingly fighting corruption, waste, and erroneous and hostile viewpoints. At the same time, the press has also actively spread positive values, new models, good practices, and typical examples among cadres, party members, and the people.

Many works not only attract public attention but also contribute to suggesting and proposing practical solutions to help Party committees and authorities at all levels overcome difficulties and obstacles, promoting development. In particular, the press has played a good role in propagating and disseminating the Party's new policies and guidelines, arousing the spirit of innovation and social responsibility among all classes of people.

These results are vivid evidence of the remarkable growth in thinking, skills and mettle of the Vietnamese press. The works are not only the fruits of creative labor but also reflect the noble responsibility of revolutionary journalism in accompanying the Party and the nation on the path of development.

In particular, in recent times, the press has done a very good job of propagating and widely disseminating the Party's major policies and orientations on the "New Era", on the revolution of streamlining the apparatus of the political system, on efforts and determination to handle the "bottlenecks" that are hindering the country's development... Thereby, the Vietnamese revolutionary press has truly integrated itself into the flow of practical life, clearly demonstrating its role in leading ideology and accompanying the Party's major steps, creating a spread of trust, responsibility, and aspirations for development among all classes of people.

These contributions are not only the results of creative labor but also evidence of the courage, intelligence, and social responsibility of the press team in carrying out its historical mission.

On behalf of the Party and State leaders, I respectfully acknowledge, commend and highly appreciate the outstanding contributions of the national press in general and the press writing about Party building work in particular.

Congratulations to the best authors, author groups, agencies and units that have been selected for the final round and awarded the 9th “Golden Hammer and Sickle” award today. These are the most typical groups, the best works, the crystallization of the creative labor process, the sharp political thinking, the intelligence, the enthusiasm and the noble social responsibility of journalists to the country, to the people and to our Party.

I would like to commend the Steering Committee and Organizing Committee of the National Press Award on Party Building - "Golden Hammer and Sickle" for their dedicated, scientific and professional work, contributing to continuously improving the quality and expanding the scale of the award each year.

The achievements from the “Golden Hammer and Sickle” Award are not only the pride of the Vietnamese revolutionary press, but also an affirmation of the great role of the press in the work of building and rectifying the Party and the political system. The award-winning works today not only mark the personal mark of the journalists, but also reflect the sense of responsibility, consensus and joint efforts of the entire national press team with the common cause of the nation.

Party and State leaders and delegates attending the Award Ceremony. (Source: nhandan.vn)

Dear comrades!

The country's achievements in nearly 40 years of implementing the renovation process are great. The new era is opening up a bright future for the nation. The new era also sets new and higher requirements for revolutionary journalism, requiring the press to develop accordingly, grow together with the nation, and be worthy of a professional, humane, and modern journalism.

The public wants to see more and more writers and journalistic works that are truly excellent and of great stature, conveying the great changes of the Party and the nation, and having high political and ideological value.

2025 is a key year for us to be determined to successfully implement the Resolution of the 13th National Party Congress, the year to hold Party Congresses at all levels towards the 14th National Party Congress, and also a year with many major holidays of the country and people. We also celebrate the 100th anniversary of Vietnam Revolutionary Press Day.

The most important task in 2025 is to successfully complete the set targets and plans, creating the foundation and premise for a breakthrough in the next term.

In that context, the press writing about Party building needs to actively contribute to helping our Party become increasingly clean and strong, on par with its responsibility and historical mission of leading the nation to develop in the new era. The press must closely follow the political tasks and major issues of the Party and the country to focus on comprehensive, profound, effective, and focused propaganda.

Accordingly, the press needs to continue to promote the Party Congresses at all levels towards the 14th National Congress of the Party; to strongly innovate the leadership and governance methods, improve the Party's leadership and fighting capacity; to step up the fight against corruption, waste and negativity; to perfect the institutions, improve the Party's capacity to formulate policies and guidelines... In particular, it is necessary to focus on promoting the building of a lean, strong, efficient, effective and efficient political system. This is a difficult, even very difficult, issue, but it is also a very urgent issue, which must be done, the sooner it is done, the more beneficial it is for the people and the country.

In addition, the press needs to step up propaganda on the organization of implementation, bringing the resolution into life so that cadres, party members and people can unify their thoughts and actions; must reflect the spirit and rising power of the nation, strongly arouse patriotism, self-reliance, self-confidence, self-reliance, national pride, aspirations for development, promote the great strength of the great national solidarity bloc, all people as one, with the same goal, determined to achieve the goal of 100 years under the leadership of the Party and 100 years of the founding of the country, for a peaceful, independent, democratic, prosperous, prosperous, civilized and happy Vietnam.

To achieve those goals and tasks, I request that departments, ministries, branches, localities, Party committees and authorities continue to pay attention to leadership, direction, coordination, sharing and creating conditions for press agencies and journalists to perform their functions and tasks well; actively and proactively provide information to the press.

I propose that the Steering Committee and Organizing Committee of the National Press Award on Party building - "Golden Hammer and Sickle" continue to research, innovate, improve the organization and effective direction, promote the positive, proactive, dynamic and creative spirit of the press agencies and press teams of the country; further improve the quality of the award so that there will be more and more works worthy of the great achievements of the renovation process and the spirit of the nation when entering the new era.

General Secretary To Lam and comrade Tran Cam Tu, Politburo member, Standing member of the Secretariat, Chairman of the Central Inspection Commission, presented the A prize to the authors and representatives of the author groups. (Source: nhandan.vn)

Dear comrades, fellow countrymen and soldiers nationwide,

Our country, our people, and our entire political system are making strong movements, operating with a new spirit and new speed, in order to create new motivations, new efficiency, and new vitality for the task of building, defending, and developing the Fatherland.

Spring is coming to every street corner, every road, every house in our beloved Fatherland. Spring is also shining on every face of Vietnamese people who are proud of the country entering a new era, proud of the glorious Party turning 95 years old.

On this important occasion, on behalf of the Party and State leaders, I would like to wish all comrades, compatriots and soldiers nationwide, journalists, reporters, editors and workers good health and success, and a warm and happy New Year 2025 and Lunar New Year.

Thank you very much.