4 deep impressions of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong

Former Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Kien shared his deep impressions of General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong during his time working with his "big brother" at the National Assembly.

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong meets voters in Hanoi in 2012 - Photo: VIET DUNG

Speaking with Tuoi Tre, former Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Kien affirmed that during his more than 5 years as Chairman of the National Assembly (from 2006 - 2011), General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong fulfilled his promise when he delivered his inaugural speech as Chairman of the 12th National Assembly on July 23, 2007.

That promise is "to closely coordinate with the President, Prime Minister, Supreme People's Court, Supreme People's Procuracy, Central Committee of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, agencies of the National Assembly, and National Assembly deputies to strive to fulfill assigned tasks well, meeting the expectations of the people".

More importantly, during his nearly three terms as Party leader, the General Secretary has shown that he has devoted himself to the revolutionary cause of the Party and the nation. This is an example of revolutionary morality that has had a huge influence on future generations.

Respect the "big brother"

* As someone who has worked with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong, what are the things about the General Secretary that impress you, sir?

Former Vice Chairman of the National Assembly Nguyen Duc Kien

- I was fortunate to have spent nearly 5 years as a colleague, working with General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong.

At that time, the General Secretary held the position of Chairman of the 12th National Assembly, and I was Vice Chairman of the National Assembly in charge of economics, finance - budget and science - technology. The time was not long but it left me with very deep impressions, with great respect for the direct leader, the "big brother - Uncle Trong" that we often called. The first impression, it must be affirmed that Mr. Trong is a person with broad knowledge, covering all fields of politics, economics - society, security, national defense, diplomacy... He also has a long-term vision, a strategic vision on strategic issues of the Party and State. Therefore, when he was the direct leader, director and operator, his knowledge was reflected in the implementation of the work of the National Assembly Standing Committee and the National Assembly at that time.

He often reminded me to pay close attention to theoretical research and practice summarization. Practice is the soul, combining practice with theory in harmony. Only then can we advise and propose contents related to reports, projects, and draft laws that will come into effect.

Second impression, Mr. Trong is a leader who always sets high requirements for responsibility and efficiency of assigned work. Especially when assigning work, Mr. Trong has great trust in everyone and rarely mentions it again. Because of that trust, everyone has to work even harder.

However, in daily life, he is a very sincere, friendly, open, sociable, and approachable person like a family member. Therefore, he can easily confide in and reflect on public and private matters so that the leader can know and give effective instructions.

Third impression, Mr. Trong is a person who highly values promoting democracy in the activities of the National Assembly Standing Committee and the National Assembly. He is very respectful, listens sincerely, listens genuinely, not just in form, to experts, National Assembly deputies, voters, and people (directly or indirectly).

That is why in the process of leadership and direction, he gave opinions close to reality, people, and practical demands of the people. From there, it helped the decisions and laws of the National Assembly to easily enter life, attracting the consensus and high support of voters and people nationwide.

Fourth impression, Mr. Trong is a very modest, gentle person but very determined in matters of principle and work discipline. When speaking or writing, he is very careful, meticulous, expressing himself with short, concise, easy-to-understand words and expressions, going straight to the point without beating around the bush, opening and ending long-windedly.

He doesn’t talk much but is very concise. Therefore, he saves time, the quality of his opinions is high, his writing is directive, and he can easily reach the cadres and the masses. In fact, many people often use flowery, soaring words, but Mr. Trong is not like that, his words are very simple and easy to understand.

National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong met with the delegation of Uncle Ho's Good Children of Ha Tinh province visiting Hanoi on June 28, 2010 - Photo: VNA

Inspire subordinates to complete tasks well

* So what is the content assigned by National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong that you remember most?

- During the 12th National Assembly term, there was a change in organization. In particular, the Economic and Budget Committee was split into two, including the Economic Committee and the Finance - Budget Committee. This separation helps the National Assembly have more real power in considering and deciding on important issues of the country in the fields of economy, public finance, public assets, state budget revenue and expenditure, etc.

With the National Assembly blocs, Mr. Trong never compares one bloc as more important than another, but always inspires the blocs and fields to strive to fulfill their functions and tasks well.

In the economic, financial, scientific and technological sectors, Mr. Trong trusts me very much. When running the National Assembly or the National Assembly Standing Committee, he does not interfere or impose but is very democratic.

He is very attentive to listen to diverse opinions, rarely speaking first in meetings. With the content assigned to me to manage and take charge of when there are many different opinions, reporting back to him, he often asks me to consider carefully, listen, consider opinions to manage and handle appropriately.

A leader who trusts his subordinates is something that few leaders have. In reality, there are many leaders who, after delegating tasks to their subordinates, still feel suspicious and sometimes even interfere, interfere, and limit their creativity.

During daily activities, weekly meetings between the National Assembly Chairman and the Vice Chairmen of the National Assembly or private meetings with members of the National Assembly Standing Committee, Mr. Trong also shared that "we are assigned by the Party and the people, so we try to advise the National Assembly to fulfill the functions of the National Assembly in the best possible way."

Mr. Nguyen Duc Kien said: "Many of his thoughts and instructions when he was Chairman of the 12th National Assembly are still being carried forward. More importantly, the next generations must continue to promote his wisdom and great contributions as well as those of other National Assembly leaders in legislative activities, deciding on important issues of the country. So that the National Assembly is always worthy of being the highest state power agency, the highest representative agency of the people and the only agency with the right to make the Constitution and laws."

Eat together with brothers in the communal dining room

During the 12th National Assembly, the National Assembly headquarters was located at 37 Hung Vuong (Hanoi) while the National Assembly House was still under construction. The office of National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong and vice chairmen like us was very simple. I remember that Mr. Trong's office was located in an old house built during the French colonial period, very simple, neat, without elaborate decorations. There were no small rooms in the room, only desks and chairs, document cabinets, and a partition to place a small bed for a nap at noon. In daily life at that time, National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Phu Trong and before that, National Assembly Chairman Nguyen Van An still ate lunch with his colleagues in the National Assembly Office's communal dining room and did not go home. When eating, they also ordered the same food as the others, without any distinction. The office staff and security guards also ate there with him and us. Along with that, there are things, even when working or resting, he often pats the shoulder and calls me "you" very comfortably. At that time, there are things he talks about common things or about everyday behavior, very close and friendly. Mr. Nguyen Duc Kien

Remember the hard times

The photo features young men Nguyen Phu Trong, Ngo Ba Duc, Hoang Van Tai (from left to right) - Photo: HA QUAN took it

In the green garden next to the Northern house in Lai Da village (Dong Hoi commune, Dong Anh district, Hanoi), teacher Ngo Ba Duc (81 years old) looked out at the yard where "5-6 generations" walked through, which is also the place with many memories of his classmate from his humble days - General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong. Flipping through old photos, he said that in the past, very few people in the village went to school. In primary school, the villagers went to school together at the village communal house opened by an old teacher. It was a combined class, the older ones did math and learned French, while the younger ones like him and Mr. Trong wrote dictation and did addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. In secondary school, the two friends rented a room near the school and contributed rice to cook together, considering each other as family. “In the morning I went to school, in the afternoon I herded buffalo, bailed water, pulled up rice seedlings, and helped my parents look after my younger siblings. In the evening I could play a little, and sometimes I would come to my house to sleep on the same bed as Mr. Trong. Only three people in the village went to 10th grade. The family gave me 15 bushels of rice, and if I wanted more money to spend, I had to earn it myself,” said Mr. Duc. According to Mr. Duc, going to school was very difficult, with only rice and vegetables, and we were so frugal that when the Red River flooded, people would swim out to collect firewood (wood scraps) and pile them up on the shore to dry, saving money to buy firewood to cook rice. When I was in high school, after the afternoon class, the two friends invited each other to go to the factory area in Duc Giang (formerly Gia Lam district) to teach extra classes for workers of the cotton and textile company. The salary was 70 cents/class, more than 2 dong each night, and we taught two sessions a week. “Mr. Trong’s family is not well off financially, so we are close, loving, and encouraging each other to focus on studying. Every day we have two meals of vegetables, and every night we share a thin blanket to keep each other warm. Mr. Trong is very careful, thoughtful, exemplary, and sincere. He is a good writer, has beautiful handwriting, but is modest. In this village, no one understands him better than us,” said the 81-year-old man.

Live in harmony and order

Mr. Duc slowly recounted that in 1970, he got married on the first day of the New Year. Two friends, Nguyen Phu Trong and Vuong Khac Con, came down to help cut decorative letters and prepare the wedding room. The electricity came back at around 6 p.m. and everyone celebrated. "Mr. Trong is a very thoughtful and responsible person. At that time, he was not married, so he was asked to be the best man," he revealed. His classmates commented that he was a quiet, humble, and responsible person. At class reunions, no matter what position he held, if he was not busy, Mr. Trong would arrange to come. Once, the General Secretary, then Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee, still took a motorbike taxi from Dang Tat Street to the West Lake floating house, surprising everyone. Sometimes, when the class was delivering the resolution, it was only during the break that the two friends met to ask about their health and hometown. "Mr. Trong did not forget his friends or his hometown," Mr. Duc said.

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Source: https://tuoitre.vn/4-an-tuong-sau-sac-voi-tong-bi-thu-nguyen-phu-trong-20240721225440317.htm