National Assembly deputies yesterday,
March 28, showed their approval of the report presented by Chairman Nguyen Phu
Trong reviewing the four year performance (2007-2011) of lawmakers.

Ha Noi’s National Assembly deputy Tran Thi Quoc Khanh spoke at the NA’s 12th meeting yesterday. (Photo: VNS)

They said in the last
four years, the 12th National Assembly had used lessons learned from the
previous legislative tenures and held high the spirit of responsibility, unity
and comprehensive renewal in all its activities, particularly in organisational
structure and working modality.

They agreed that a
certain success had been recorded in legislative work, both quantitative and
qualitative.

In the past four
years, 68 laws and 12 Resolutions were passed while the National Standing
Committee approved 13 Ordinances and seven Resolutions relating to legal
matters.

Relating to the
supervisory function of the National Assembly, the deputies agreed that a lot of
progress had been achieved, particularly in the way a supervision visit was
conducted as well as the quality of the question-and-answer sessions.

In addition to
successes gained in the period under review, the deputies were frank about
limitations in their performances in the three key areas such as law building,
supervision and making important decisions towards the nation’s destiny.

Tran Thi Hoa Ry from
the Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of Bac Lieu was full of praise for
successes gained in the past four years, despite many difficulties and
challenges inside and outside the country.

“Yet we have to
concede that we have not done well in the area of law building. We’re law makers
but we’re heavily dependent on drafting committees from relevant agencies,” said
Ry.

Tran Ngoc Vinh from
Hai Phong northern port city pinpointed limitations during the law making
process, particularly those that had strong impacts on the life of many people,
such as the land law.

Le Thi Nhung from the
Cuu Long (Mekong) Delta province of An Giang asked agencies that were assigned
to draft the laws to keep to the time schedule and ensure the bill was of high
quality.

“The National
Assembly should not hastily pass a law if it does not have a high consensus from
the deputies,” Nhung cautioned.

Hoang Van Toan, from
the northern province of Vinh Phuc, agreed that some laws passed during the 12th
National Assembly were not of high quality due to their poor preparation.

He attributed the
shortcoming to lack of consultation with professional experts, particularly in
matters relating to advanced science and technology.

Ngo Minh
Hong from Ho Chi Minh City said: “In our activities sometimes we’re in a passive
position as in the case of approval of the balance sheet of the State
budget or budget estimates.”

Referring to
overseeing activities undertaken by the deputies in the past four years, Tran
Ngoc Vinh, from Hai Phong port city, agreed that the work done was professional
and practical.

“Yet time dedicated
to the activity is limited. And the implementation of conclusions and
recommendations by the mission members are not up to the level of commitment,”
said Vinh.

Commenting on the
performance of the National Assembly Committee, deputy Toan, from Vinh Phuc
Province, asked the National Assembly to increase the number of offices
affiliated to the National Assembly and elevate the Ombudsman Board to the
Ombudsman Committee so that it could help speed up the settlement of complaints
and petitions filed by citizens.

During their
discussion, many deputies asked the National Assembly to increase the number of
full-time deputies in the coming tenure and adopt a mechanism to give awards to
deputies who were active during plenary and group working sessions.

VietNamNet/Viet
Nam News