People in high-rise buildings speak differently from those in thatched houses.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc “wanted to hear more from the people” when he felt that the first part of the meeting with voters in Hai Phong City was carried out according to a “script”.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc speaks to a large number of voters in Hai Phong City - Photo: LK

General Secretary Nguyen Phu Trong said that the recent meeting with voters in the capital Hanoi was of high quality, because people spoke wholeheartedly about "national issues and people's livelihoods".

The person who chaired the meeting with voters of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc that day was the Chairman of the Hai Phong City Fatherland Front Committee. He invited the heads of departments and branches to speak and wanted to stop at the opinion of the leader of the City Women's Union.

The meeting almost showed clear preparation when the host invited this voter and introduced that she "will speak on food safety and hygiene".

Not completely satisfied with such a way of governing, the Prime Minister stood up and asked voters to say more because in addition to "representing voters to give prepared speeches", he also "wanted to hear unprepared opinions that reflect the breath of life".

Indeed, as the press reported, voters added - as the Prime Minister himself commented - "their angry, conflicting opinions help us see the negative side of life".

The most important requirement for National Assembly deputies and policy makers is to hear the opinions of all classes of people in a complete, truthful and timely manner. Lack of information will make policies far from reality, incorrect information will make policies wrong, and late information will make policies outdated.

To hear the truth from the people, leaders must be close to the people, must make them believe and be willing to listen to even the most unpleasant words. Politicians need to listen to the opinions of “voter representatives” (usually leaders of departments and localities) because these people have a lot of information.

But the voice of the “voter representative” is not necessarily complete because they are also tied to the interests of the government apparatus, especially when the meeting has been scripted in advance. Therefore, the wishes of the “voter representative” are not necessarily the wishes of the majority of the people, especially of voters in remote villages, young voters...

"People living in high-rise buildings think and speak differently than people living in thatched houses" - The General Secretary once said this when meeting with people in Tay Ho district.

To hear the people speak the truth, National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan suggested that "delegates take advantage of every opportunity and time, according to each field they work in and are attached to, to meet with voters, listen to their opinions and aspirations, not just periodically meeting four times a year before and after two National Assembly sessions."

I think that to hear the people speak honestly and fully, we need to de-administrate contact activities. In Singapore, parliamentarians meet with voters regularly every week and every month. These meetings are usually held at night, usually starting at 8pm and ending at midnight (to hear the opinions of civil servants, students, workers, etc., who have to work during office hours).

Social networks are also an interesting “place” that many foreign parliamentarians are choosing to meet voters. These are very noteworthy suggestions for Vietnamese National Assembly deputies.

According to Tuoi Tre