There are still errors in handling letters and petitions from the grassroots level.

Việt Nam•23/11/2023

On the morning of November 22nd, continuing the program of the sixth session, the National Assembly heard reports from the Government and the verification report of the National Assembly's Law Committee on the work of receiving citizens and resolving complaints and denunciations in 2023.

Inspector General of the Government , Doan Hong Phong, presented the Government's report.

Received 453,097 complaints and denunciations.

Presenting the Government 's report, the Inspector General of the Government, Doan Hong Phong, stated: Regarding the work of receiving citizens by administrative agencies, in 2023 there were 391,512 visits by people to file complaints, denunciations, petitions, and feedback on 294,909 cases; there were 2,943 large groups of people.

Administrative agencies received 453,097 applications of various types; processed 428,955 applications, of which 348,181 were eligible, including 52,637 complaints and 22,342 denunciations; and had 29,040 complaint and denunciation cases within their jurisdiction. The resolution rate for complaints was 17,463 out of 21,374 cases, reaching 81.7%; and for denunciations, 6,618 out of 7,666 cases, reaching 86.3%.

The Government Inspectorate, in coordination with the Ministry of Public Security, relevant ministries and agencies, and localities, has conducted inspections, reviews, and resolution of 1,003 outstanding, complex, and long-standing complaints and denunciations. Based on this, the Government Inspectorate reported to the Prime Minister, who then issued a directive instructing the Government Inspectorate, the Ministry of Public Security, and the People's Committees of provinces and centrally-governed cities to implement the necessary actions in the coming period.

The Government Inspectorate has completed the data entry of these 1,003 cases into the National Database for ministries, sectors, and localities to access and use. People's Courts at all levels, People's Procuratorates at all levels, and the State Audit Office have no outstanding, complex, or protracted complaint or denunciation cases.

Regarding the inspection of responsibility for implementing laws on receiving citizens and resolving complaints and denunciations, 1,531 inspections and examinations were conducted at 2,408 agencies, organizations, and units; 1,283 conclusions were issued. Through these inspections, administrative sanctions were recommended against 233 organizations and 520 individuals for violations.

Government Inspector General Doan Hong Phong stated that, although the work of receiving citizens has improved compared to the previous period, the regular citizen reception by the heads of some agencies, ministries, and localities has not been fully implemented according to the law; the quality of handling complaints in some localities is not high, and there are still instances of errors and mistakes, and complaints are not considered and processed promptly at the grassroots level.

The rate of resolving complaints and denunciations under the jurisdiction of administrative agencies is lower than in 2022 and has not met the target; the quality of resolution in some localities remains limited; the implementation of decisions resolving complaints and conclusions on the content of denunciations is still slow and not thorough in some places. The inspection and review of outstanding, complex, and protracted cases in some localities have not been proactive and are still slow compared to the requirements of the Prime Minister.

Chairman of the National Assembly's Law Committee, Hoang Thanh Tung, presented the verification report.

The handling of complaints and denunciations at the grassroots level remains limited.

Reviewing the Government's report, the Chairman of the National Assembly's Law Committee, Hoang Thanh Tung, stated: The report shows that the work of receiving citizens and resolving complaints and denunciations in 2023 continued to be innovative, achieving positive results, and resolving 81.7% of complaints and 86.3% of denunciations within the jurisdiction in a timely manner in accordance with the law.

However, the sharp increase in citizens directly approaching ministries and agencies to file complaints, denunciations, petitions, and feedback, especially in the number of large groups (up 296%), indicates that the effectiveness of complaint and denunciation resolution at the grassroots level remains limited, and the situation of citizens filing complaints with central agencies continues to be complex. Therefore, we propose that the Government direct an assessment to clarify the causes and develop appropriate solutions to definitively resolve complaints and denunciations at the grassroots level.

The direct interaction of citizens by heads of state administrative agencies is best implemented at the commune level (91% of commune People's Committee chairmen directly meet with citizens); at the provincial level, there has been positive progress (79% of provincial People's Committee chairmen meet with citizens), 2% higher than in 2022 (77%) and 23% higher than the 5-year average of 2016-2021 (56%). However, at the ministerial level, only 60% of the target is met.

It is predicted that in 2024, in localities with high urbanization rates, hotspots for administrative complaints and denunciations will still be related to land and environment, especially for projects requiring land acquisition, compensation, and resettlement...

"Therefore, we propose that the Government pay attention, closely monitor the situation, decisively direct, set specific tasks, and strengthen the responsibility of relevant agencies to promptly handle emerging issues and prevent complex complaints and denunciations from occurring," said Mr. Hoang Thanh Tung.

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