Pham Diem
State and Law Research Institution
Vietnam has started a process of comprehensive renewal of the country, including the step-by-step renewal of the organization and operation of the State and the Government. Though being just at the initial stage, the cause of “doi moi” (renewal) has yielded important results.
I. The Government’s organization and operation under the 1992 Constitution
The new Constitution was promulgated in 1992, then amended and supplemented in 2001 after almost 10 years’ implementing the policy of “doi moi.” It can be considered the Constitution of Vietnam in the “doi moi” period.
Under the 1992 Constitution, the governmental institutions have substantially changed as compared to those in the previous Constitutions. The Council of Ministers under the 1980 Constitution has been changed to the Government under the new Constitution. This is not merely the change of its appellation, but more importantly the change in nature with accurate determination of its position and role as the highest executive body in the State power structure of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam. With the new name of the Government, the assembly nature was no longer heightened like in the Government Council under the 1959 Constitution and the Council of Ministers under the 1980 Constitution. The Government under the 1992 Constitution is an institution organized and operating on the basis of combining the regime of collective leadership (the entire Government collective) with the regime of single boss (the Prime Minister). So, the Government’s nature under the Constitution of the “doi moi” period has substantially changed as compared to the Council of Ministers under the 1980 Constitution.
It has been defined in Article 109 of the 1992 Constitution: “The Government is the executive body of the National Assembly and the highest administrative agency of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam.” So, here it can be clearly seen that the Government has acted in two capacities: first, as the executive body of the National Assembly, and second, as the highest administrative agency of the State, and that the history of the organization of the Vietnamese State in the modern time has always persisted in the principle that the State power is unified and indivisible. However, such negation of the power division principle in the power structure based on the theory of separation of three powers (the legislative power, the executive power and the judiciary power) does not mean the rejection of application of reasonable elements of such principle in terms of legal techniques. This has been clearly expressed in the power structure of the Vietnamese State without the separation of powers but with the assignment and coordination among the legislative power, the executive power and the judiciary power, as distinctively seen in two capacities of the Government which is both dependent and independent agency. Its dependent position has been defined by its capacity as the executive body of the National Assembly while its independent position by its capacity as the highest State administrative agency.
In the 1992 Constitution, the competence between the Government and the Government head being the Prime Minister personally has been defined more clearly and more specifically than in the previous Constitutions.
According to Articles 109 and 110 of the 1992 Constitution, the Government is composed of the Prime Minister, the Deputy-Prime Ministers and other members. The Government is accountable to the National Assembly and reports on its activities to the National Assembly, the National Assembly Standing Committee, the State President. The Prime Minister is accountable to the National Assembly and reports on his/her activities to the National Assembly, the National Assembly Standing Committee and the State President.
Under Article 117, the ministers and other members of the Government are responsible to the Prime Minister and the National Assembly for the domains or branches under their respective management.
According to the 1992 Constitution, the Government has 11 duties and powers (Article 112):
- To direct the work of the ministries, the ministerial-level agencies, the Government-attached agencies, the People’s Committees of all levels; to build up and consolidate the State administrative apparatus from the central to grassroots levels; to guide and inspect the People’s Councils in the enforcement of law, create conditions for the People’s Councils to perform their tasks and exercise their powers.
- To ensure the enforcement of the Constitution and laws, to organize and direct the work of law propagation and education among the population.
- To present bills, draft ordinances and other legal drafts before the National Assembly and the National Assembly Standing Committee.
- To exercise the unified management over the building and development of the national economy; to adopt the national financial and monetary policies; to develop culture, education, health, sciences and technologies, to carry out socio-economic development plans and implement the State budget.
- To take measures to protect the legitimate rights and interests of citizens, creating conditions for citizens to exercise their rights and fulfill their obligations.
- To consolidate and strengthen the all-people defense, political security and social order; to build up the people’s armed forces; to effect the general mobilization; to proclaim the state of emergency and all take necessary measures to defend the country.
- To organize and direct the work of State inventories and statistics, the State inspection and supervision.
- To exercise the unified management of the State’s external affairs; to sign, accede to, ratify international treaties on behalf of the Government; to direct the implementation of international treaties which Vietnam has signed or acceded to.
- To adopt social policies, nationality policies and religious policies.
- To decide the adjustment of boundaries of the administrative units below the provincial/municipal level.
- To coordinate with Vietnam Father-land Front and mass organizations in performing its tasks and exercising its powers; to create conditions for those organizations to operate efficiently.
The Prime Minister has 6 duties and powers (Article 114):
- To direct the work of the Government, the Government members and the People’s Committees at all levels; to preside over the Government meetings.
- To propose the National Assembly to set up or abolish ministries and ministerial-level agencies; to submit to the National Assembly or the National Assembly Standing Committee when the National Assembly is in recess for ratification the proposals on appointment, release from duty or dismissal of Deputy- Prime Ministers, ministers and other members of the Government.
- To appoint, release from duty or dismiss vice-ministers and officials of equivalent rank; to approve the election, release from duty, secondment or dismissal of presidents and vice-presidents of the provincial/municipal People’s Committees.
- To suspend or annul decisions, directives and circulars of ministers and/or other members of the Government, decisions and directives of People’s Committees and/or presidents of People’s Committees of the provinces or centrally-run cities, which contravene the Constitution and/or laws.
- To suspend the implementation of resolutions of the provincial/municipal People’s Councils, which contravene the Constitution and/or laws and at the same time propose the National Assembly Standing Committee to annul them.
- To observe the regime of reporting before the population through the mass media on the important issues which the Government must settle.
The above-said provisions show that the 1992 Constitution has determined more clearly and more specifically the competence between the Government and the Government head being the Prime Minister personally.
The spirit and target of building a strong Government, which were expressed in the 1946 Constitution, have been inherited in the 1992 Constitution in its provision that the Government is a collective leadership and also an agency submitting to the leadership of the Prime Minister according to single-boss regime. The clear and specific definition of the Prime Minister’s powers and duties in the 1992 Constitution has given him an independent legal position and real powers- a guarantee for the efficient operation of the Government and simultaneously raising the responsibility of the Prime Minister, who has been determined with two capacities: the capacity to represent the Government in performing the tasks and powers defined in Article 112, and the personal capacity as the Prime Minister in performing the tasks and powers prescribed in Article 114.
Panoramically, the organizational model of the Government in the 1992 Constitution demonstrates the inheritance of experiences of the previous Constitutions and the redress of the shortcomings and irrationalities in the provisions of the previous Constitutions. That is truly a reform and a renewal.
II. Practical organization and operation of the Government
Since the initiation of the cause of “doi moi” in 1986, the Vietnamese Government has gone through various terms (corresponding to various terms of the National Assembly):
- The Council of Ministers of the 1987-1992 term, which was composed of the Chairman and 6 vice-chairmen of the Council of Ministers, 38 ministers or heads of the ministerial-level agencies.
- The Government of the 1992-1997 term, which was composed of the Prime Minister, 3 Deputy-Prime Ministers, 33 ministers or heads of the ministerial-level agencies.
- The Government of the 1997-2002 term, composed of the Prime Minister, 5 Deputy- Prime Ministers, 23 ministers or heads of the ministerial-level agencies.
- The incumbent Government, which is composed of the Prime Minister, 3 Deputy-Prime Ministers, 23 ministers or heads of the ministerial-level agencies.
Before the new Constitution was enacted, during the years of between 1986 and 1992, the Vietnamese Government, then called the Council of Ministers, was organized and operating on the basis of the 1980 Constitution, but step by step renewed its organization and operation and at the same time carried on the national cause of “doi moi” initiated by the Communist Party of Vietnam. In the course of organizing the implementation of the five-year (1986-1990) plan on socio-economic development, the Government adopted various policies and measures in order to create conditions for all economic sectors to develop, focussing on three major economic programs: the food and foodstuff production program; the consumer goods production program and the export goods production program. The Government’s activities during this period greatly contributed to bringing the country out of a serious socio-economic crisis.
Since the passage of the new Constitution by the Vietnamese National Assembly in April 1992, the Government has been organized and operating on the basis of the new Constitution. Stemming from the practical demands and experiences, the organizational structure and operation modes of the Government have been gradually improved. The Government apparatus has been initially streamlined. The working relationships between the Government and the National Assembly as well as its Standing Committee have been step by step renovated with a view to raising the effectiveness and efficiency of the operations of the State bodies. In the administrative and State management fields, the Government’s monthly meetings have not only discussed and decided on macro matters but also attached importance to the settlement of urgent national issues, having sought ways and means to remove all obstacles in the State management domain. The contents of Government meetings are made public to the people nationwide through the mass media. Alongside the promotion of the wisdom of the Government collective, the personal responsibility of each Government member has been enhanced with a view to gradually raising the efficiency of the Government’s management.
Particularly in Vietnam, the State administration headed by the Government has been being under a vigorous reform. Right in March 1995, the Government set a plan to further reform the State administration with a view to building a clean, strong and efficient administration. Since then, the Vietnamese administration has been reformed with the following contents:
- Determining more clearly the legal status of the highest administrative agencies and positions: The Government, the Prime Minister, the ministries and the ministers.
- Determining more clearly the jurisdiction relationships between the central Government and the local administrations as well as the relationships between centralization and decentralization according to territorial regions.
- Elaborating scientific and rational processes for making management decisions.
- Building a system of administrative jurisdiction in order to well ensure the relationship between the State and citizens, making it really close and convenient.
- Building a specific and rational system of administrative grades and ranks, a regime and procedure for recruiting State employees so as to choose the right persons; regularly training and fostering State employees in order to constantly raise their quality and capabilities.
Up to now, the administrative reform in Vietnam has focussed on three domains: streamline of the administrative apparatus, reform of administrative procedures, renewal of the contingent of public servants and resolute fight against red tape and corruption.
In sum, over the past more than 10 years, the Vietnamese Government has been constantly renovated in its organization and operation, and obtained important achievements, thus positively contributing to the national cause of “doi moi.” However, the current administration in Vietnam remains cumbersome, less effective and efficient in its operation and is still hit by red tape and corruption. The Vietnamese Communist Party and State are carrying on the economic reform and the renovation of the political system.-