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According to President Ho Chi Minh, socialism can be understood simply as a good and superior social order. When social life is more complete, spiritual life becomes richer, with everyone having work, people being well-off, and enjoying a happy life.
At a meeting with constituents after the first session of the 16th National Assembly, General Secretary and President To Lam discussed ideas on building socialist communes and wards in Hanoi. Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan, Deputy Director of the Institute of Socialist Science at the National Academy of Politics and Public Administration, said To Lam’s proposals have both scientific and practical significance.
Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan said a socialist ward/commune model includes eight core content groups and 51 quantitative criteria across multiple fields, including the economy and politics, as well as culture, security, national defense, health, and education.
He emphasized that people are the subject, the center, the driving force, and the endpoint of the model, and that people’s satisfaction and happiness are the measures of success. In his view, the pilot of the socialism-in-urban-ward model does not mean the state will cover everything; instead, the state and the people should work together.
While there are many criteria, he said the most important is ensuring people have a better life and higher income. He added that the pilot should not be uniform or monotonous, but diverse—so the model remains vibrant, attractive, effective, and responsive to people’s needs. A mechanistic, rigid model would not be desired.
Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan said Hanoi has ample conditions to implement the pilot. After 40 years, the capital has the potential and resources, and—above all—leadership’s commitment to removing barriers in institutional policy, which he described as fundamental advantages.
He also noted that Hanoi faces significant challenges. The city is crowded, with enduring infrastructure and traffic issues. There is also the challenge of reorganizing local governance into two levels, while cadres face high pressure to meet rising demands.
Implementing the pilot, he said, will inevitably raise expectations and require large investments. He warned of risks including formalism and waste, as well as concerns that the model could be seen as reintroducing state-driven allocation—perceptions that need to be addressed. Another risk is that attention to the pilot could lead to other tasks being neglected.
He further pointed to the issue of deliberate misinformation by hostile forces, saying it requires firm countermeasures.
Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan said that building socialist people must focus on the socialist person, particularly cadre leadership in these wards—how to make them willing to speak up, take action, and bear responsibility for the common good.
He added that localities such as Haiphong, Lao Cai, and Da Nang have implemented this policy since 2025, linking it to building socialist human capital and pursuing it actively. The Academy is paying attention and conducting studies related to this content.
Dr. Nguyen Anh Tuan said he is leading a project to summarize experiences in building socialist humanity in Haiphong and Da Nang, with the aim of developing proposals for the central government and other localities based on those experiences.
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