Building consensus from grassroots level

Implementing the Central Government’s policy, Điện Biên province is urgently deploying the rearrangement and merger of villages and residential groups. Recently, the provincial People’s Committee issued Plan No.4294/KH-UBND on deploying the rearrangement of villages and residential groups, alongside the arrangement, utilization, and policies/regimes for part-time workers at the commune, village, and residential group levels across the province.

According to the plan, besides clearly defining the roadmap and completion milestones, the province places special emphasis on the requirement that the formulation of options must suit practical conditions and ensure public consensus.

In Núa Ngam commune, from building the merger plans and reviewing and arranging personnel to settling policies for part-time officials, everything must be completed within a short timeframe to ensure the general progress of the organizational restructuring. Prior to the rearrangement, Núa Ngam commune had 99 part-time workers. Under the tentative plan, after restructuring from 33 villages down to 17 villages, the personnel demand is expected to decrease to 51 people, meaning there will be around 48 redundant cases.

Nguyễn Thành Trung, Chairman of the Núa Ngam commune People’s Committee, stated that the locality determines the settlement of policies for the redundant workforce must be carried out overtly and transparently, ensuring a harmony between streamlining the apparatus and the legitimate rights of grassroots-level officials. Reviewing the arrangement, transfer, or retirement regimes according to regulations will be based on the capacity, aspirations, and practical conditions of each individual, with the highest goal of preserving solidarity and stability within the community.

Along with focusing on perfecting rearrangement plans, many localities also attach special importance to gathering public feedback to build consensus right from the grassroots level. On May 27, Quài Tở commune organized a conference to collect opinions on the village rearrangement plan within the commune. Through the conference, 18 opinions were recorded from cell secretaries and village chiefs, offering practical proposals tailored to the realistic conditions of each village.

According to Giàng A Dế, Secretary of the Party Committee and Chairman of the People’s Council of Quài Tở commune, this is not just a procedural step but also an important basis for completing plans that match reality. Those close to the grassroots level who understand the customs, lives, and thoughts of the people will help the government select the most harmonious option, creating consensus among the citizens before implementation.

Developing tailored plans

Currently, the entire province has 1,446 villages, hamlets, and residential groups, including 1,310 villages and hamlets and 136 residential groups. As a mountainous province with divided terrain, unevenly distributed population, and many ethnic minority groups living intermingled, the province determines that the rearrangement of villages and residential groups must be executed flexibly, matching the characteristics of each area. Beyond the criteria of population size and natural area, localities also pay special attention to factors such as historical background, cultural traditions, customs and habits, and the community cohesion of the residents.

Pa Ham commune currently has 15 villages with more than 1,500 households, which is expected to be reduced to 8 villages after rearrangement. Up to now, the commune has completed the criteria review step and conducted initial public consultations, with the majority of residents concurring with the local policy and rearrangement options.

Trần Đức Cương, Chairman of the Pa Ham commune People’s Committee, stated that there are 5 ethnic groups living together in the area with 5 different religious practice groups. Therefore, the process of developing village-merging plans is carried out under the principle of prioritizing adjacent villages that share similarities in history, culture, and customs to facilitate management, administration, and the maintenance of community cohesion. Accordingly, the commune tentatively plans to keep Huổi Bon village intact, while the remaining 14 villages will be restructured into 7 new ones.

In Sáng Nhè commune, the number of villages is expected to decrease from 30 down to 21 after the rearrangement. Throughout the plan-building process, the locality attaches special importance to cultural elements and the similarities within the residential communities.

For instance, the plan to merge Trung Dù village with a portion of Lịch 2 village is not only based on adjacent geographical locations but also stems from similarities in customs and habits. Both areas have a large population of the Mông ethnic group sharing many cultural, belief, and community living traits, thereby creating favorable conditions for organizing daily life post-merger.

Along with that, the remaining part of Lịch 2 village is expected to be merged with Lịch 1 village to establish a new village named Mảng Linh. Chief of Lịch 1 village Vàng A Lênh shared that “Mảng Linh” translates to an iron helmet. According to the village elders, the name “Mảng Linh” is associated with an ancient legend of the people in this region. Therefore, when the option to establish a new village arose, the residents all aspired to name the village “Mảng Linh,” helping people feel closer and more attached to the community after the rearrangement.

More than just a numbers-reduction puzzle, the restructuring of villages, hamlets, and residential groups in Điện Biên is an important step to elevate the validity and efficiency of the grassroots-level political system. Throughout that process, public consensus serves as the decisive factor for success. When citizens understand, agree, and jointly participate in building the plans, the rearrangement will no longer be a merely mechanical change, but instead become an opportunity to construct residential communities with more rational scales, more efficient management, and better public service.