On May 4, at the headquarters of O Cho Dua Ward, Party General Secretary and President To Lam, together with National Assembly deputies from Constituency No. 1 of Hanoi, met with voters following the First Session of the 16th National Assembly.

The National Assembly delegation of the city's Constituency No. 1 includes Major General Luu Nam Tien, Political Commissar of the Hanoi Capital Command and Nguyen Hoang Truong, Party Committee Secretary and Chairman of the People's Council of Cua Nam Ward.

Constituency No. 1 of Hanoi covers 10 wards: Ba Dinh, Ngoc Ha, Giang Vo, Hoan Kiem, Cua Nam, Dong Da, Kim Lien, Van Mieu – Quoc Tu Giam, Lang and O Cho Dua.

Central-level attendees were Central Party Committee member and Chief of the Party Central Office Nguyen Hai Ninh and Assistant to the General Secretary in charge of the General Secretary's Office To An Xo.

Hanoi city representatives who were also attending the meeting included Politburo member and Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Tran Duc Thang; Central Party Committee member and Standing Vice Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Nguyen Trong Dong; Central Party Committee member, Vice Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee and Chairman of the Hanoi People's Committee Vu Dai Thang; Vice Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee, Chairman of the Hanoi People's Council and Deputy Head of the Hanoi National Assembly delegation Phung Thi Hong Ha; Vice Secretary of the Hanoi Party Committee Nguyen Van Phong; and Vice President of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Central Committee, Standing Board member of the Hanoi Party Committee and Chairwoman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Hanoi Bui Huyen Mai.

Also attending the meeting were representatives of the Standing Committee of the Hanoi People's Council and People's Committee, along with leaders of departments, agencies and localities.

At the meeting, after hearing the report on the outcomes of the First Session of the 16th National Assembly and responses to previous voter petitions, voters expressed satisfaction with the success of the election and the session.

Voters voiced confidence that newly selected personnel would bring innovation, promote socio-economic development and improve living standards.

At this session, the National Assembly passed important laws and resolutions related to socio-economic development, finance and budget, social security and state management, directly affecting employment, income and daily quality of life.

Voters called for policies to be promptly detailed and implemented consistently from the central to the local levels, ensuring accessibility and full benefits for citizens.

They welcomed the passage of the amended Capital Law and expressed expectations that it would bring positive changes, making Hanoi more modern and reinforcing its position.

Voters urged the National Assembly to issue guidelines on specific mechanisms and policies for planning and urban development so that old apartment renovation projects can be implemented quickly.

During the meeting, eight voter comments were presented, with many focusing on food safety, noting overlapping management responsibilities among ministries that can lead to blame shifting when incidents occur.

Opinions called for a more centralized management model and clearer assignment of responsibilities to lead agencies and local leaders in cases of violations.

Regarding the restructuring of residential group models, some proposed that authorities establish clear criteria for non-specialized staff, including age, qualifications, experience and community engagement skills, to ensure effective organization.

Several voters noted that local health stations currently face shortages in personnel and medical conditions, while higher-level hospitals remain overloaded and proposed funding packages for family doctor programs, home care services, electronic health records management and regular home visits.

Voters also agreed that it's necessary to carry out the two-tier local government model effectively to strengthen grassroots authorities in identifying labor demand and coordinating with businesses to implement practical vocational training programs.

Speaking at the meeting, General Secretary and President To Lam acknowledged the voters' candid, thoughtful and responsible opinions, reflecting public concerns.

He noted that although the opinions covered different sectors, they all reflected a common expectation for more effective public services, more practical policies, clearer accountability, and more tangible results.

Addressing several concerns, he said it's necessary to focus on grassroots health stations, improve service quality and meet people's healthcare and preventive needs.

On food safety control, he called for improved management mechanisms, clearer responsibilities among ministries and stronger accountability of local authorities, especially at the grassroots level.

The General Secretary and President stressed the need for strictly handling violations in production and business activities that affect public health, including criminal liability when necessary, and for eliminating unsafe street food practices, particularly near school gates.

He also paid importance to accelerating infrastructure upgrades and renovating old apartment buildings to improve living standards and support urban restructuring, identifying priority projects and building consensus for implementation.

He stated that the delegation would compile and classify voter recommendations by local and central authority levels and forward them to competent agencies for consideration and resolution, ensuring legitimate rights and interests.

In early July, the Politburo and Secretariat will conduct a one-year review of the three-tier local government model to draw lessons for more effective operations, especially at the grassroots level.

He affirmed that the First Session sets high requirements for localities in implementing National Assembly decisions.

General Secretary and President To Lam said the revised Capital Law, along with the 100 year vision for the Capital Master Plan, provides a foundation for Hanoi to proactively design policies, mobilize resources, remove bottlenecks and reorganize development space.

The decisive factor is implementation, which, although challenging, offers a major opportunity for Hanoi to make breakthroughs and develop at a higher level in the new phase.

He noted that capital development is not only about large projects or long-term goals, but also about tangible improvements in daily life and effective resolution of legitimate concerns.

Hanoi must shift from policy issuance to implementation, from having mechanisms to operating them, from planning to realization and from correct statements to effective results.

Outlining key directions, he stated that the revised Capital Law and the Capital Master Plan must be implemented in an integrated manner, with each special mechanism tied to clear goals, specific tasks, responsible agencies and measurable outcomes.

When implementing the revised Capital Law, the city should identify priorities, address bottlenecks, focus on issues directly affecting people's lives and tasks that create long-term growth momentum.

These include transportation, environment, flooding, renovation of old apartments, social housing development, urban renewal, land management, handling delayed projects, food safety, grassroots healthcare, school safety and public service quality.

He stressed that the city cannot rely on traditional growth models based on expanding investment, urban sprawl, land exploitation, or population growth, but must innovate its development model based on institutional quality, labor productivity, science and technology, innovation, digital transformation, green economy, knowledge economy, private sector development, cultural industries and high-quality human resources.

For Hanoi, economic development must go hand in hand with cultural and human development, with the thousand-year Thang Long – Hanoi culture serving as an internal resource for growth.

The city holds significant resources in land, infrastructure, public assets, urban space and human capital, which must be effectively utilized while addressing delayed projects, idle land and unfinished works to create development momentum.

He suggested that Hanoi adopt a governance model based on data, technology, outcomes and accountability.

Grassroots authorities should handle issues within their authority promptly, accurately report those beyond their jurisdiction and follow through until resolution, ensuring that voter petitions do not remain unresolved across multiple meetings.

The city may pilot ward and commune-level units as models of governance, where infrastructure development, spatial organization and administrative operations allow residents to clearly experience the effectiveness of government through tangible improvements in quality of life.

Achieving these goals will help Hanoi become more developed, civilized, modern and livable, he said.