Dr. Nguyen Tan Gi Trong has been continuously associated with the National Assembly for 41 years.

Professor-Doctor Nguyen Tan Gi Trong (1913 - 2006) was born in My Tho (now part of Dong Thap province). He served as a National Assembly representative for seven consecutive terms (1946 - 1987) and as a member of the Standing Committee of the National Assembly for 25 years (1st, 3rd, and 4th terms).

FIRST TIME QUESTIONING THE MINISTER OF HEALTH

Historical records show that at the beginning of the session on the evening of October 30, 1946, under the chairmanship of Mr. Tran Huu Duc, National Assembly delegates continued to question the Government. That evening, Dr. Truong Dinh Tri - Minister of Health and Social Affairs, and Mr. Ca Van Thinh - Acting Minister of Education, took the podium to answer questions.

Representative Nguyen Tan Gi Trong (1913 - 2006) speaking at the National Assembly . Photo: KMS archives.

Minister Truong Dinh Tri received seven written questions. Following questions from delegates Doan Trong Truyen (Thua Thien) and Nguyen Thi Thuc Vien (Hanoi) regarding the recruitment of medical practitioners and the management of drug prices and quality control, delegate Nguyen Tan Gi Trong (Nam Dinh) raised a question about universal healthcare for the population. Minister Truong Dinh Tri replied that since the government came to power, the Ministry of Health has continued its old work, with some new tasks added. Due to drug scarcity and a shortage of medical personnel, progress has been slow. Universal healthcare has only reached the districts and counties, not the communes.

After the Minister of Health finished speaking, Dr. Nguyen Tan Gi Trong reiterated that he had inquired about the distribution of medical staff to various locations, not what the Minister had answered. He knew that the distribution was uneven, as Hanoi, for example, had a surplus of medical staff while many other places were severely lacking, especially in the South, where so many soldiers were sacrificing their lives to protect the country. Dr. Nguyen Tan Gi Trong suspected that perhaps Minister Truong Dinh Tri had some ulterior motive. In response, Minister Truong Dinh Tri replied that it was simply because there were too few medical staff.

Next, delegates Nguyen Tan Gi Trong and Ho Duc Thanh (Nam Dinh) further questioned the Minister of Health and Social Affairs about the recruitment of laborers, relief efforts, famine relief, and the Labor Law.

STRAIGHTFORWARD, LOYAL TO THE REVOLUTION

During the early period of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam, the government assembled a team of highly skilled and reputable medical professionals such as doctors Ho Dac Di, Ton That Tung, Tran Huu Tuoc, and Nguyen Tan Gi Trong... Dr. Trong, in particular, was appointed Deputy Director of the Military Medical Department (Ministry of National Defense) by Minister Vo Nguyen Giap after the success of the August Revolution. In early 1946, he was again appointed Director General of the Information and Propaganda Department (Ministry of Interior) while remaining Deputy Director of the Military Medical Department.

Professor and Doctor Nguyen Tan Gi Trong welcomes Cuban President Fidel Castro. Photo: Family archives.

Dr. Nguyen Tan Gi Trong recounted this event during his lifetime as follows: "In early 1946, President Ho Chi Minh summoned me and said to me in a friendly manner: 'You should work in propaganda, because you used to work in journalism.' I hesitated and replied to him: 'Uncle, I can't do it, because I'm not a Communist Party member.' But he still advised me: 'This is a revolutionary task, you must take on this responsibility,' and President Ho Chi Minh personally appointed me as Director General of the Information and Propaganda Department."

However, the fact that the head of the state's propaganda agency was not a Communist Party member caused some people around him to be unimpressed. Therefore, he once wrote a letter to President Ho Chi Minh requesting to resign from his position as Director General. President Ho Chi Minh encouraged him to continue working with peace of mind, and then explained to the staff: "Mr. Trong is from the South, straightforward but very loyal to the revolution. For the sake of national unity, we must work together to shoulder the revolutionary cause."

In his final years, when asked by the press about his memories of the resistance war and of President Ho Chi Minh, Professor Nguyen Tan Gi Trong shared: "...Speaking of Uncle Ho, we could talk endlessly... He was a simple yet great man. Being close to him, living with him, made me even more deeply impressed, admiring, and infinitely respectful of him. Although I am now old and weak, I still vow to follow the path of Uncle Ho, dedicating all my mind to serving the country's medical cause and striving to train and nurture a generation of young cadres with sufficient talent and virtue to continue the legacy of their predecessors." ( to be continued )

Whatever work the country and the revolution needed him to do, he did it well, from his expertise in medicine to his role in information and propaganda and parliamentary work. After the country was unified and he returned to the South, he became the Head of the Physiology Department at the Ho Chi Minh City Medical Cadre Training Center.

Professor-Doctor Nguyen Tan Gi Trong was awarded the First Class Independence Medal by the State, was conferred the title of Professor of Medicine in the first round, and received the title of People's Teacher (1990).

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/bac-si-nguyen-tan-gi-trong-41-nam-lien-tuc-gan-bo-voi-quoc-hoi-18526011122010724.htm