Remembering General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong - the great personality

80 years of life, 57 years in the Party, more than 13 years shouldering the responsibility of the head of the Party and State. When leaving us, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong left behind the example of a great personality and a great career.

The most incredible legacy that the General Secretary left to the entire Party and people was the spirit of dedication to the common cause of the nation and the wisdom through experience, summarization, discovery, and contribution to the theoretical cause of the Party. There will be many things about the life of that communist soldier that the People have remembered and will tell to future generations.

As the General Secretary and an intellectual, he understood that the Party leads through guidelines and policies, the strength of the Party organization, and the revolutionary moral example of each Party member. Therefore, Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong was very interested in theoretical research and summarizing practices and made many contributions to the cause of applying and developing Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh Thought in the renovation period.

History has chosen him as a man of great stature in personality, morality, and intelligence to be entrusted with the responsibility of General Secretary. In the position of supreme power of the head of a ruling and leading Party, with the responsibility to speak and the right to give orders, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong always "makes his statements" based on intelligence, morality, and civilization.

Reading the documents, articles, and speeches of the General Secretary, when referring to “big, new, and difficult” issues, readers see the caution of a researcher. Before conclusions that are quite clear in thinking and mature in practice, he still often uses the word “reasonably” to express many things. This approach can be seen in many fields that he mentioned and made many contributions to.

The theory of socialism in Vietnam during the renovation period was crystallized in the famous work of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong: "Some theoretical and practical issues on socialism and the path to socialism in Vietnam." Almost all the most fundamental issues for the process of socialist-oriented development and building socialism in Vietnam have been skillfully transformed by General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong from the basic theory of Marxism-Leninism and Ho Chi Minh thought into renovation practice in recent decades.

The major theoretical issues he raised were theses: "What is socialism? Why did Vietnam choose the socialist path? How and in what ways can socialism be gradually built in Vietnam? What is the significance and what problems does the practice of renovation and socialism in Vietnam in recent times pose?" and from there "How should we shape socialism and orient the path to socialism to suit the specific circumstances and characteristics in Vietnam?"The author thoroughly resolved all with a solid theoretical basis and prosperous practice.

The entire Party, the entire people, and the entire army sympathize and agree with the author's assessment of Vietnam's socialist model: "We need a society in which development is truly for the people, not for profit that exploits and tramples on human dignity. We need economic development, social progress, and justice, not increasing the gap between rich and poor and social inequality. We need a humane, united, mutually supportive society oriented towards progressive and humane values, not unfair competition, "big fish swallowing small fish," for the selfish interests of a few individuals and groups. We need sustainable development in harmony with nature to ensure a healthy living environment for present and future generations, not to exploit appropriate resources, consume material goods without limit, and destroy the environment. We need a political system where real power belongs to the people, is by the people, and serves the interests of the people, not just a wealthy minority. Perhaps those good wishes are the true values ​​of socialism and also the goal, the path that President Ho Chi Minh, our Party, and our people have chosen and are steadfastly and persistently pursuing.”[1]

A conclusion was made by the General Secretary, but at the same time, it was also a suggestion for everyone to participate and contribute to the common theoretical achievements. For him, building socialism or researching its theory is always the result of collective effort and intelligence. The most important thing for General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong - his experience and the Vietnamese revolution law is: "People's strength is the profound source of victory and development."[2]

As someone who has held many important positions in the fields of Party and State leadership, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has conducted extensive research, reflecting many concerns and thoughts and summarizing experiences in many practical fields.

The number of 35 works written by the comrade during the renovation can reflect a part of the enormous work with rich content. There are vital and urgent issues such as "Party building and rectification is a key task for national development" (2017). There is a book that deals with the fundamental issues of power, such as "The National Assembly in the renovation process to meet the requirements of building and perfecting the socialist rule-of-law state of Vietnam" (2024); There are extremely thorny and complicated issues but related to the survival of the socialist regime, the leadership of the Party and the country's destiny "Resolutely and persistently fight against corruption and negativity, contributing to building our Party and State increasingly clean and strong" (2023)... In many other fields, such as culture, national defense, diplomacy, and the economy, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has made many significant theoretical contributions.

From his responsibility for his position, his working capacity, his thinking capacity, and his dedication to the Party's cause and the nation's future, the General Secretary's research works have contributed to creating a scientific basis for many Party policies. Many researchers have agreed that General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong has made great contributions to the institutionalization of many fields and has organized and implemented them effectively in practice.

Transforming the Party's political determination, the State's policies, and the people's aspirations into the Party and State's legal norms in a timely, transparent, easy-to-implement, and people-pleasing manner is a scientific, meticulous, precise, and impartial task. Such a multifaceted requirement takes work to realize. It can be affirmed that, in 13 years as General Secretary, Comrade Nguyen Phu Trong has excellently fulfilled that task.

The Party, the State, and international friends have given General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong many noble and respectful assessments of his career and life. Our people have expressed their love and condolences to a man who devoted himself to the cause he pursued all his life: “A strong Party, a developed country, and an everlasting nation.”

[1] Nguyen Phu Trong, Some theoretical and practical issues on socialism and the path to socialism in Vietnam, National Political Publishing House Truth, 2022, pp.21-22.  

[2] Nguyen Phu Trong, Some theoretical and practical issues on socialism and the path to socialism in Vietnam, National Political Publishing House Truth, 2022, p.37.