The cadres and people of Muong Chanh commune can do it, sir!

In 2011, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and his delegation chose Muong Lat, the Western Border District of Thanh Hoa Province, as their destination. According to recorded documents, the trip was an opportunity for the delegation led by the General Secretary to evaluate the implementation of Resolution No. 26-NQ/TU on "agriculture, farmers, and rural areas" by the Party Committees and local authorities at all levels of Thanh Hoa Province.

More importantly, the trip allowed significant cadres to see the working methods of leaders, thereby changing the way cadres work, communicate, and behave with the people.

Although their time with the Muong Lat ethnic people was brief, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong and the working delegation visited many places and listened to their thoughts and aspirations.

Mr. Loc Van En, former Party Secretary of Muong Chanh commune (Muong Lat district, Thanh Hoa), clearly remembers General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's direction during a working session lasting about an hour in the mountainous border commune.

“After General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong assigned Muong Chanh to be a pilot for building new rural areas in Muong Lat district, he instructed: “Today, I assign the task to the collective of cadres and people to bring Muong Chanh to the new rural finish line. Can you do it? Is Secretary En determined? Can you really do it?” He repeated that question three times to encourage and assign political tasks for the coming time.

At that time, I answered him: ‘The cadres and people of Muong Chanh commune can do it, sir!’ After his words, the commune cadres were very excited because this was the first time the Muong Chanh commune had been personally cared for, directed, and assigned direct tasks by a high-ranking cadre of the Party. Although there was a bit of pressure, everyone was determined to follow his instructions.

“The General Secretary also advised the cadres of Muong Chanh commune: ‘Na Hin village borders Laos and is the birthplace of the commune Party Secretary. You are both a cadre, a party member, and a local, understanding the customs and living habits of the people, so it will be convenient to be a model for building a new rural area in the village. If Na Hin can build a new rural area, other villages in the commune will look to learn from its experience,’” Mr. En quoted General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong as saying during a working session with the leaders of Muong Chanh commune and Muong Lat district.

At that time, the entire Muong Chanh commune had about 3,000 households, but up to 30% of them were hungry, and the rest were mainly poor households. After listening to the report of the commune leaders, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong instructed the grassroots cadres to strive to promote autonomy, find solutions to eliminate hunger, and reduce poverty based on support from the Central and the province.

"You guys must try your best to do the task I assigned well. If the locality solves the problem of poverty alleviation well, I promise to come back to visit my fellow countrymen in five years," Mr. En recounted General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's promise.

Also, according to Mr. En, during the working session with the cadres of Muong Chanh commune, General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong was very interested in the issue of border security between Vietnam and Laos: "Uncle asked the commune cadres quite carefully about the coordination with Laos to ensure border security. I frankly answered: 'Sir! Our people and the people of Laos are two but one. From funerals to weddings and anniversaries... both sides interact, so the relationship is very close (many Vietnamese people have families in Laos - PV).

After I finished speaking, the General Secretary was confident and happy but did not forget to advise: ‘Vietnam and Laos are brothers, but maintaining border security is a common political task of the two countries. Maintaining peace and security is key to stability, creating favorable local economic and social development conditions. You comrades must pay attention to coordinating and doing this task well,’” Mr. En quoted General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong as advising.

Following the direction of the General Secretary, in 2018, Na Hin village (Muong Chanh commune, Muong Lat district) was the first village of Muong Chanh commune to meet the new rural standards. The poverty rate in the village has decreased significantly and there are no more hungry households. The material and spiritual life of the people in the highland border area of Thanh Hoa has improved significantly.

The people and officials who had the chance to talk to him that year have now retired. They still remember General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong's promise and hope that he will return to Muong Lat and visit Muong Chanh.

Now, in the memory of Mr. En in particular and the people of Muong Lat district in general, the image of the simple General Secretary, who is close to the people, remains.