Deputy Secretary Vo Van Minh of the City Party Committee and Chairman of the HCMC People’s Council stressed the gravity of the occasion. “This session holds exceptional significance”, he remarked. “It embodies a proactive spirit, a unified will, and a high level of political determination to institutionalize the policies and tasks following our recent administrative merger.”
Recalling the first session on July 1, the Chairman shared that this urgent meeting was crucial to promptly institutionalize the new apparatus and its personnel, ensuring the administrative machinery operates without interruption. At the end of the day, it’s about maintaining a seamless connection between the elected delegates and the people they serve.
Concurrently, the meeting drafted new operational regulations for the Council and its various bodies, assigned tasks to delegate groups, and conducted professional training for our new commune-level delegates and their support staff.
Proactively, the HCMC People’s Council Standing Committee established five special task forces, led by Chairman Vo Van Minh and the Vice Chairpersons. These groups conducted on-the-ground surveys across the new communes, wards, and special zones.
This allowed the city to quickly identify both the advantages and the teething problems in the initial days of the new two-tier local government. More importantly, it allowed the city to gather recommendations from the grassroots level to compile and forward to the HCMC People’s Committee for swift resolution.
After three weeks of quite smooth operation, the new administrative units have established their working regulations and have clearly delineated tasks for their officials and civil servants. The initial coordination between different agencies appears to be functioning in line with their assigned responsibilities.
However, certain limits on facilities do exist. These include inadequate infrastructure and work equipment; an IT backbone that doesn’t yet meet modern requirements; and some inconsistencies in the new decentralization and authorization processes.
These procedural hiccups have, in some cases, hampered the proactivity and efficiency of the wards. The People’s Council has already formally requested that the HCMC People’s Committee and relevant agencies review and address these issues to ensure the entire system runs smoothly and better serves citizens and businesses.
Chairman Vo Van Minh then mentioned the focus of this 2nd session:
- The city’s socio-economic and defense-security performance over the first six months of the year will be assessed before key tasks and solutions for the second half of 2025 are defined, aiming to conduct a realistic evaluation, identify shortcomings, and chart a clear course forward for the city’s continued development.
- A report from the Fatherland Front Committee in HCMC on its role in government building will be presented, along with a summary of voter opinions and petitions.
- Reports on the Council’s own activities in the first half of the year will be reviewed, followed by approvals for the work program for the next six months. This includes a report on the thematic supervision over the implementation of the National Assembly’s Resolution 98, which grants HCMC special development mechanisms, aswell as the 2026 Supervision Program and the official Working Regulations for the entire Council.
- The Council will consider and pass several crucial resolutions aimed at boosting socio-economic development and improving people’s lives, particularly those to address issues that have emerged from the practical realities of the administrative merger and the new two-tier local government system.
- Personnel appointments within the city’s jurisdiction will be undertaken, adhering strictly to Party regulations and state law.
The matters being decided in this session are, without a doubt, of paramount importance in achieving the 2025 socio-economic targets and will lay a robust foundation for the successful realization of the 11th City Party Congress’s resolutions and the city’s 2021-2025 five-year plan.
In response to how the People’s Council will enhance effectiveness through digital transformation, Chairman Vo Van Minh stated that the Council is committed to a powerful transformation by leveraging information technology.
It is finalizing an internal mobile application for delegates, the “HCMC People’s Council app”, designed to facilitate paperless sessions, enable electronic voting, and provide instant access to documents. It will also be a powerful tool for delegates to track legislation and monitor the resolution of constituent petitions and complaints.
To support this, opinions from all 168 local jurisdictions will be digitized and integrated, allowing delegates to easily monitor progress and keep citizens informed. In parallel, the HCMC People’s Council is upgrading its website into a full information portal and using a Fanpage to make public feedback faster and more convenient.
Voicing his hopes for the 205 delegates who represent more than 14 million HCMC dwellers, Chairman Vo Van Minh expressed his full confidence.
The delegates were elected across all three former territories, bringing practical experience and deep local understanding. Each will apply their full capacity to fulfill their duties as a bridge between people and government.
Delegates aren’t merely voters on resolutions – they’re the living connection between the Party’s vision and people’s aspirations. Each must study policies thoroughly to communicate and mobilize support for Council resolutions while staying engaged with ground reality, listening to constituents’ legitimate concerns.
The Council’s leadership will coordinate closely with the HCMC Delegation of National Assembly Deputies and Fatherland Front Committee to strengthen supervision and communication, ensuring all citizens participate in successfully implementing our resolutions.
