Amendment of the 2013 Constitution: People's comments are very responsible and focused

According to the Plan of the Committee for Drafting Amendments and Supplements to a Number of Articles of the 2013 Constitution and the direction of the Government , the collection of opinions from the people, sectors and levels on the draft Resolution amending and supplementing a number of articles of the 2013 Constitution will be conducted within one month, starting from May 6, 2025 and completed on June 5, 2025.

As the agency assigned to draft the Government Report and draft the Report synthesizing the results of collecting opinions from the people, sectors and levels on the draft Resolution amending and supplementing a number of articles of the 2013 Constitution, the Ministry of Justice is actively implementing the task as well as urging and supporting ministries, sectors and localities to implement according to the set schedule. Reporters of the Government Electronic Newspaper had an interview with Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh, Director of the Department of Criminal and Administrative Law, Ministry of Justice about the progress of this work.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh, Director of the Department of Criminal and Administrative Law, Ministry of Justice. Photo: VGP/DA

The Ministry of Justice is the agency assigned to synthesize the results of public opinion collection at all levels and sectors on amending the Constitution. Can you tell us what the main content that people have contributed to so far is?

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh: Currently, through monitoring, we see that the opinions of ministries, branches, localities and people contributing to the draft amendment to the Constitution are currently focused on 4 groups of contents.

The first is the content of the regulation amending and supplementing Articles 9 and 10 of the 2013 Constitution when implementing the policy of arranging socio -political organizations under the direct control of the Vietnam Fatherland Front.

The second is the design of regulations on administrative units in the content of amending and supplementing Article 110 of the 2013 Constitution, in which opinions focus on whether to provide general or specific regulations on administrative units below provinces and centrally-run cities.

Third, consider keeping the provision that "the establishment, dissolution, merger, division, and adjustment of administrative boundaries must consult local people" in Clause 2, Article 110 of the current Constitution.

According to many people, this regulation has been implemented very well, promoting democracy. Moreover, the application of information technology also creates more favorable conditions for collecting public opinions.

Fourth, consider keeping the regulation that People's Council delegates have the right to question the Chief Justice of the People's Court and the Chief Prosecutor of the People's Procuracy in Clause 2, Article 115 of the Constitution because this is a mechanism to control state power...

There have been about 14 million direct comments on the VNeID application.

To facilitate the work of synthesizing and collecting public opinions according to the set schedule, what specific instructions has the Ministry of Justice given to ministries, branches and localities, Madam?

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh: To facilitate agencies, ministries, branches and localities in the process of organizing the collection of opinions and synthesizing the results of the collection of opinions, the Ministry of Justice has provided specific instructions on the following tasks: Contents of the collection of opinions, focusing on contributing opinions to the contents of amending and supplementing 8 articles of the 2013 Constitution, closely following the guidelines and viewpoints of the 11th Conference of the 13th Party Central Committee on the scope of this amendment and supplement to the Constitution; sources of collecting opinions, methods of counting and recording opinions; outline of the report summarizing the results of the collection of opinions and the attached appendix for agencies, ministries, branches and localities to implement consistently.

The Ministry has clearly instructed agencies, ministries, branches, and localities to promptly issue plans or directives and instructions for timely implementation, clearly defining the progress of their agencies, ministries, branches, and localities accordingly. For example, for localities, it is necessary to set timelines for completing the collection of opinions for communes, then districts, and then provinces, to accumulate data from communes first, then districts, and then provinces; at the same time, ensuring that the Provincial People's Committee completes the report and sends it to the Ministry of Justice before May 30, 2025. The Ministry also provides guidance on how to collect comments directly or in writing.

Currently, the number of people participating in giving opinions in various forms, including direct opinions on the VNeID application, is increasing day by day. As of 13:00 on May 24, 2025, about 14 million people have participated in giving opinions.

It is expected that this number will increase in the coming time. The Ministry of Public Security and local authorities at all levels are stepping up propaganda and guidance on the steps to contribute comments on the VNeID application, ensuring speed and convenience.

Regarding the progress of the drafting of the Government's Report and the draft Report synthesizing the results of collecting opinions from the people, sectors and levels on the draft Resolution amending and supplementing a number of articles of the 2013 Constitution, can you tell us how far the Ministry of Justice is progressing?

Ms. Nguyen Thi Hanh: Based on the assigned tasks, the Minister of Justice has issued a Decision to establish a Constitutional Working Group, including many leaders of units under the Ministry of Justice with experience and knowledge in this field to participate in developing the content of the Reports.

Currently, agencies, ministries, branches and localities are synthesizing the results of the consultation to develop a Report to send to the Ministry of Justice. We also regularly guide and urge agencies, ministries, branches and localities in the implementation process.

With the highest determination and effort, the Ministry of Justice will preside over and coordinate with agencies, ministries, branches and localities to ensure the progress of the development and completion of the draft Government Report and the draft Report synthesizing the results of collecting opinions from the people, branches and levels on the Resolution amending and supplementing a number of articles of the 2013 Constitution, submitting to the Government and the Drafting Committee amending and supplementing a number of articles of the 2013 Constitution on schedule and ensuring quality.

Thank you very much!

Dieu Anh (performed)

Source: https://baochinhphu.vn/sua-doi-hien-phap-nam-2013-nhan-dan-gop-y-rat-trach-nhiem-tap-trung-102250524181903776.htm