Ca Mau Province Grapples with Rising Cross-Level Petitions Amidst Local Governance Challenges

A significant increase in cross-level petitions, where citizens bypass local authorities to petition higher provincial bodies, is posing a challenge for Ca Mau Province in southern Vietnam. In the first half of the year, the province received 468 such petitions, a nearly 70% rise compared to the same period last year. This trend is largely driven by residents' dissatisfaction with the resolutions provided by grassroots-level administrations. Land, compensation, and site clearance issues are the primary drivers behind these escalated petitions. According to the head of the Provincial Party Committee's Internal Affairs Department, many citizens directly petition the Provincial Party Committee Standing Board and provincial-level agencies instead of addressing their grievances at the local level. This situation places a considerable burden on provincial agencies, prolongs resolution times, and incurs additional costs and travel time for the citizens themselves. Contributing factors include a psychological aspect where some citizens, following administrative restructuring that removed the district-level intermediary, feel more inclined to petition the province directly. Furthermore, limitations in the professional expertise and public engagement skills of some grassroots officials are cited as challenges. Notably, the proactive engagement of Party secretaries at the xã (commune) level is uneven, with some not actively receiving citizens. This indicates that in some areas, local leadership may not be adequately or thoroughly addressing issues from their inception. Ca Mau Provincial Party Committee emphasizes that building public trust is paramount. It is believed that if residents' concerns are genuinely heard, thoroughly explained, and fairly resolved at the local level, the trend of cross-level petitions will subside. Leaders are strictly instructed to avoid shirking responsibility or engaging in perfunctory dialogues with the public, focusing instead on fostering trust. To address this, the province is enhancing the digitalization of petition management, establishing a shared database for complaints and denunciations across different levels and sectors to track progress and prevent duplication, and intensifying legal education to ensure citizens understand their rights and obligations. Conversely, strict sanctions will be applied to those who exploit democratic rights to instigate collective litigation, disrupt public order, or file false accusations. The effectiveness of citizen reception and direct dialogue will become a key performance indicator for evaluating the work of leading officials. The provincial leadership will increase oversight and inspection of localities and units that experience backlogs of petitions or high rates of cross-level complaints. Information Source: Nhan Dan