People and experts in Ho Chi Minh City agree to amend the Constitution

Ho Chi Minh City is expected to take the lead in institutional reform and effectively operate the two-level government. Photo: Nguyen Le

According to the National Assembly Standing Committee, the direction of amending the 2013 Constitution is divided into two groups. The first group, on the two-level local government model, has transitional provisions to ensure that the two-level local government operates smoothly and without interruption, in accordance with the implementation of the plan to merge some provincial-level administrative units, not organize the district level, and merge the commune level. The second group stipulates the powers, functions, and tasks of the Fatherland Front, socio-political organizations, and mass organizations assigned by the Party and the State.

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Van Trinh. Photo: Provided by the character

Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Van Trinh, former Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Academy of Officials, said that Resolution 60-NQ/TU dated April 12, 2025 of the 11th Conference of the 13th Party Central Committee agreed with the proposed contents of the Politburo on the plan to merge provincial-level administrative units, not organize the district level, merge the commune level and build a 2-level local government organization model. Therefore, according to Associate Professor, Dr. Nguyen Van Trinh, amending the 2013 Constitution at this time is very urgent, creating a legal corridor to carry out the revolution of streamlining the apparatus, improving the effectiveness and efficiency of the political system, meeting the requirements of national development in the new era, the era of national development.

Lawyer Nguyen Van Hau, Standing Member of the Vietnam Bar Federation, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Bar Association, said that the 2013 Constitution stipulates the organization of three-level local governments, revealing overlaps and duplications in tasks and powers, thereby creating many unnecessary administrative procedures that have not yet promoted the requirements of administrative reform in the current context.

In addition, the 2013 Constitution stipulates the functions, tasks, and relationships between the Vietnam Fatherland Front, socio-political organizations, and mass organizations assigned by the Party and the State, but there are still some issues that need to be further improved. Specifically, some functions and tasks of the Fatherland Front have not been fully promoted, there are still overlaps and interferences in some functions and tasks; at times and in some places, the situation at the grassroots level has not been truly closely followed, and the people's thoughts and aspirations have not been truly timely grasped.

Lawyer Nguyen Van Hau. Photo: Nguyen Le

According to Lawyer Nguyen Van Hau, the direction and scope of this constitutional amendment are constitutional in nature, and it is expected to only amend and supplement 8/120 Articles of the 2013 Constitution.

The purpose and requirements of this constitutional amendment are to institutionalize the Party's policies and regulations to continue to innovate and perfect the political system and government apparatus from the central to local levels. Therefore, it is necessary to be cautious, objective, democratic and effective, and to seek opinions from many people from all walks of life.

Dr. Tran Quang Thang, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Institute of Economics and Management, said that the practical operation of the 3-level local government model (province - district - commune) has revealed many limitations. Due to the many levels of management, financial and human resources are divided, making the decision-making process complicated, slowing down the progress of policy implementation and causing waste of resources, requiring a large budget for operation, but the efficiency is not commensurate with the costs.

Because of the above limitations, it is necessary to convert to a 2-level local government model (province - commune) to streamline the apparatus, improve management efficiency, better serve the people and promote socio-economic development.

Dr. Tran Quang Thang. Photo: Provided by the character

Dr. Tran Quang Thang said that this is not only a change in organization but also requires innovation in thinking in local governance, in order to lay the foundation for a modern, effective, and people-friendly management system, ensuring people's participation in the decision-making process. The shift to a two-tier model will help reduce the intermediary apparatus and optimize resources. The streamlined apparatus helps local governments operate more effectively, reduce operating costs, and improve their ability to respond quickly to practical issues. This is an important and revolutionary reform step.

From the above analysis, Dr. Tran Quang Thang highly agrees with the amendment and supplement of the 2013 Constitution, and hopes that the National Assembly will pay attention to some key factors: First, amending the Constitution in conjunction with amending related laws to ensure consistency in the organization of the State apparatus; when power is more concentrated at the provincial level, there needs to be a strict monitoring mechanism to ensure transparency and effective management. Second, not organizing at the district level requires restructuring the management system, avoiding overlapping functions between the provincial and communal levels; at the same time, it is necessary to clearly define the responsibilities of each level of government, avoiding the situation where the provincial level takes on too many tasks, causing overload.

Source: https://hanoimoi.vn/nguoi-dan-chuyen-gia-tai-tp-ho-chi-minh-dong-thuan-sua-doi-hien-phap-701568.html