Directive No. 278/TTg on the implementation of Resolution No. 26-NQ/TU regarding improvements in distribution and circulation work.

DIRECTIVE

OF THE PRIME MINISTER NO. 278/TTG OCTOBER 1
1980 ON THE IMPLEMENTATION OF RESOLUTION 26-NQ/TU ON IMPROVING DISTRIBUTION WORK

Implementing Resolution 26-NQ/TU of the Political Bureau on improving distribution work, the Council of Ministers has issued several documents to detail that resolution and focus on the following key points:

- On the basis of promoting production, strengthening procurement, and firmly grasping the sources of goods under state control.

- Strengthening market management, developing state-owned trade and cooperative purchasing and selling, suppressing speculation and smuggling.

- Ensuring the supply of essential goods for workers and civil servants and providing assistance to those with many difficulties.

- Increasing revenue, saving expenses, striving for budget balance, and strengthening cash management.

This directive outlines matters requiring attention during the implementation of Resolution 26-NQ/TU from now until early 1981.

1. Efforts must be made to vigorously promote production, purchase agricultural products and industrial goods, viewing this as a decisive link to ensure the livelihood of the working people, especially those who receive salaries from the state.

Implementing the decisions of the Council of Ministers regarding the stabilization of obligations for selling agricultural products, pork, beef, and tobacco... the departments managing procurement and supplying production materials and consumer goods, and local People's Committees need to grasp the following points:

a) Must combine procurement with the provision of production materials to serve and promote production, particularly in concentrated production areas and specialized zones, while in the buying and selling relationship with producers, the following principles must be reflected:

- Concentrated production according to planning and the State's plan is more advantageous than scattered production;

- Cooperatives and groups have advantages over individual households;

- Buying and selling with the state according to contracts is more beneficial than buying and selling at agreed prices.

b) Must combine the implementation of the obligation system for selling products with the application of commodity-money relations so that the state can grasp the majority of agricultural products.

First, implement well the system of stabilizing obligations and two-way contracts; simultaneously apply flexible policies for buying and selling at agreed prices where necessary. In buying and selling at agreed prices, strict management of quotas and exchange ratios and settlement prices must be ensured.

The procurement management department together with the State Price Commission will guide specific provinces and cities to clearly define exchange ratios and settlement prices for each region (including several provinces or some counties with similar conditions) to avoid unreasonable disparities between adjacent regions and those with similar conditions.

In buying and selling at agreed prices, there must be strict guidance to prevent market price inflation, which would harm the state or farmers; at the same time, the market must be strictly managed, not allowing traders to engage in business with goods uniformly managed by the state, especially in concentrated production areas and specialized zones according to planning and the State's plan.

The Ministry of Finance will coordinate with relevant ministries to immediately establish accounting systems for purchasing agricultural products and selling production materials and consumer goods at agreed prices in October 1980.

c) From now on, the use of consumer goods to sign two-way contracts or to exchange for agricultural products through barter should be limited. Along with mobilizing agricultural products through the obligation system and two-way contracts, the departments managing procurement and provincial and municipal People's Committees must organize procurement at agreed prices and pay in cash based on production conditions and available agricultural products; simultaneously sell technological goods at agreed prices to obtain money for procurement at agreed prices.

Supply agencies must grasp the production seasons and needs of the people to promptly deliver materials and goods to localities to serve production and living.

The State Bank must proactively adjust cash reserves between regions to meet the timely cash needs for seasonal procurement.

d) All state-owned enterprises, regardless of central or local, must hand over all products to state-owned trade. Research stations, if they have products to sell, must also sell them to state-owned trade. To encourage production development, state-owned enterprises, in addition to the portion provided by the state for planned production, are allowed to directly purchase agricultural raw materials not under exclusive trading rights and from producers who have fulfilled their contractual obligations to produce additional amounts beyond what is supplied by the state. For products produced under the above circumstances, enterprises may account for higher purchase costs and production costs, while trade is permitted and tasked with organizing the purchase of these products at higher prices on the principle of ensuring that enterprises recover production costs, achieve reasonable profit margins, and sell at prices acceptable to consumers.

Agencies and organizations are not allowed to directly contact state-owned enterprises to purchase products within the scope of state unified procurement and distribution; state-owned enterprises among themselves shall not collude to exchange such products.

Localities (provinces, districts, communes) shall not exchange goods under state unified management and trading unless they have fulfilled their tax obligations and product delivery obligations to the central government.

e) Departments managing procurement (Ministry of Foodstuffs and Foodstuffs, Ministry of Internal Trade...) must work with the Ministry of Agriculture to guide the implementation of procurement policies for each type of crop and animal, and develop specific plans to coordinate with supply departments to organize good supply services for production combined with procurement in key areas.

2. Efforts must be made to strengthen market management and implement economic and administrative measures in a coordinated manner.

a. In the immediate months ahead, it is necessary to grasp key markets and key products, and focus on addressing the primary requirement of preventing smuggling from abroad, eliminating illegal trade in goods under unified state management, first strictly prohibiting the sale of gold and silver, foreign exchange, gasoline, fertilizer, tobacco, precious raw materials for import, and various types of machinery and spare parts produced or imported by state economic organizations; major agricultural products in concentrated production areas. The Ministry of Domestic Trade and other ministries managing goods in the list of items under unified state management must immediately issue circulars and directives guiding the implementation for each type of product.

b. Ministries and People's Committees of provinces and cities need to actively and urgently expand the business activities of state-owned trade and cooperative trade to compete with private traders, combat illegal trading activities, prevent speculative activities of private traders, and proactively manage the market to better serve production and the living conditions of workers.

c. All sectors and levels must urgently implement strict administrative measures, particularly paying attention to:

- Strengthening the collection of commercial and industrial taxes to contribute to organizing and managing the market, improving socialist society for private commercial and industrial sectors, combating speculation, and smuggling;

- Strictly implementing the business registration regulations for commercial and industrial activities, viewing this as a basic investigation of the operating situation of private businesses and as a struggle to rearrange and manage the market, enhancing the leadership and management role of the state over collective and individual commercial and industrial sectors;

- Organizing market inspection teams in cities and regions with concentrated agricultural products, at transportation hubs to combat speculators and smugglers engaged in illegal trading.

3. Efforts must be made to the highest extent and measures implemented as urgently as possible to ensure the living standards of workers and civil servants:

a. It is necessary to thoroughly implement the policies and measures outlined in Resolution 26-NQ/TU of the Party Central Committee, with the most important measure being ensuring the supply of essential goods to workers and civil servants; using the revenue from adjusting prices of unreasonable goods to cover losses in the trade of certain essential goods (buying at agreed prices to sell to workers and officials at directed prices) is one of the very important measures.

The state is currently lacking agricultural products (grain, food...) to supply to workers and civil servants, especially in cities and industrial zones, while also lacking industrial goods to bring to rural areas for purchase of agricultural products. Therefore, in the short term, it is necessary to firmly allocate some consumer goods to rural areas for sale at high prices to buy sufficient grain and food to supply to soldiers, workers, and civil servants.

The State Planning Commission, the Ministry of Domestic Trade, and the Ministry of Foodstuffs must establish and separate funds for goods sold to workers and civil servants and funds for purchasing agricultural products, and clearly inform the People's Committees of provinces and cities about these funds for management.

The General Confederation of Labor needs to explain to workers and civil servants the situation and policy, agreeing and supporting the state in focusing on solving the problem of supplying food to cities and industrial zones, willing to endure shortages of some consumer goods to bring to rural areas for sale to farmers and purchase agricultural products.

b. Along with implementing the Council of Ministers' Decision on ensuring the living standards of workers and civil servants, the Ministry of Labor must cooperate with relevant ministries to study and propose the government to supplement some policies and measures to encourage enterprises to utilize equipment and labor for external contracts; allow workers and civil servants to work overtime to increase both production and income; expand piece-rate wages, lump-sum wages, and apply appropriate wage and bonus forms according to the production conditions of different industries; supplement and amend some allowances to encourage increased labor productivity and work efficiency (such as extra-hour medical examination allowances, additional-hour teaching allowances...).

c) Adjustments to some retail prices of consumer goods and service prices must be carefully prepared, cautiously implemented, and strictly guided. Timely explanations must be provided to workers, civil servants, and the public, especially in cities, to understand the policy and strategy of the Party and the state, dispelling false propaganda and countering enemy psychological warfare.

Trade organizations and financial banking institutions must closely coordinate in implementing the dual-price policy and selling goods through two systems effectively, avoiding loopholes and exploitation.

4. Increase revenue, reduce expenditure, strive for budget balance, and strengthen cash management.

a. Production, procurement, domestic trade, and foreign trade sectors must actively implement measures to boost production, procurement, and distribution to ensure revenue for the state budget.

b. All sectors and levels must urgently direct the implementation of measures to increase revenue and reduce expenditure according to Resolution No. 89-CP dated March 17, 1980 of the Council of Ministers to achieve the requirement of the Party Central Committee's Resolution of basically balancing the budget in 1980 and reducing cash deficit.

- Vigorously collect agricultural taxes, commercial and industrial taxes, and resolutely collect overdue credit debts.

- Concentrate investment in key projects, reduce expenditures on outsourced labor.

- Reduce administrative and defense expenditures.

- Rectify banking operations and expand the banking network to improve customer service quality, enhance non-cash transactions, and mobilize more idle social capital.

c. Based on the inventory of assets on September 1, 1980, it is necessary to improve asset management (especially asset accounting); grasp the production capacity of various sectors, localities, and facilities to serve as the basis for formulating a proactive and solid 1981 plan, fully utilizing potential capabilities; immediately mobilize idle equipment and materials for use.

According to the results of the inventory, actual stock levels must be compared with accounting records to identify the reasons for discrepancies between records and reality. Strengthen state asset management; remain vigilant to prevent malicious elements from exploiting the inventory process to legitimize the theft of state assets.

5. Enhance organizational guidance in implementation.

a. Depending on their functions, Ministries and Provincial People's Committees must direct the effective implementation of the Government Council's documents issued to concretize Resolution 26-NQ/TW of the Party Central Committee on improving distribution and circulation work.

These documents form a unified system, which must be implemented in a coordinated manner, creating a foundation and promoting each other to achieve the three-step goals outlined in Resolution 26-NQ/TW of the Party Central Committee.

In implementing the Party Central Committee's resolution, the central policy viewpoint of the Party Central Committee must be thoroughly understood, key points grasped firmly, practical solutions and appropriate steps taken, and specific combat plans developed. Ministries and Provincial People's Committees must submit these plans to the Prime Minister before October 15, 1980, for reporting.

b. Along with the implementation plans and measures, Ministries and localities must develop personnel organization schemes and strengthen the cadre corps.

Ministries must assign leaders to coordinate with Provincial People's Committees to directly guide and resolve urgent issues in key areas.

Organizations that need immediate strengthening include tax collection agencies, procurement agencies, market management bodies, banks, retail organizations, and service providers. Departmental and local leaders must cooperate with the Party's Organization Department to select, transfer, and supplement cadres to meet the requirements of the tasks.

It is necessary to organize timely situation monitoring and information gathering; anticipate possible scenarios (advantages as well as difficulties) to handle them proactively, avoiding passivity. Emphasis should be placed on strengthening inspection work from the outset to understand the implementation of the resolution and draw lessons; particularly, attention should be paid to auditing the signing of contracts and the sale of production materials and consumer goods in exchange for agricultural products, rectifying state asset management work.

c. During the implementation of the Party Central Committee's resolution, which is detailed through Government Council decisions, if there are points deemed necessary for modification or supplementation, relevant sectors and levels must promptly report to the Prime Minister for consideration; meanwhile, they must still comply with the already issued decisions.

Relevant sectors and levels must implement the following reporting system:

Ministries and localities must report regularly once a month (on the last day of the month), and additionally report urgently if there are unexpected events. Specifically, Ministries within the distribution and circulation sector must report twice a month (mid-month and end-of-month). Additionally, the State Price Control Committee must report daily prices in key locations, and the State Bank must report weekly cash situations to the Prime Minister (on Thursdays).