'President Tran Duc Luong's visit to his hometown is that simple?'

Down to the mine to visit the workers who are opening the tunnel

President Tran Duc Luong's first trip to the locality in his new position was to Quang Ninh , visiting miners and the Geological Federation, where he used to work.

In 1997, he was 60 years old and very healthy, so he went down to the mine to visit the workers who were digging the tunnel. That year, the coal industry was still facing many difficulties. His going down to the furnace mirror and working with the coal industry leaders was a great encouragement.

President Tran Duc Luong meets workers of Khe Cham Coal Company mining coal in the mine (2002). Photo: Trong Nghiep/VNA.

Working with Quang Ninh province and the transport sector, he expressed concerns about the economic efficiency of building Cai Lan port.

That day, the Southeast Asian Football Championship was taking place. During the break, everyone was allowed to watch for a few minutes before continuing their work. There was cheering on the street... a staff member came in from outside to whisper the good news to the President.

He smiled. That match, the Laos team won, opening the door for Vietnam to enter the final.

The second working trip to the local area was the Mekong Delta. The Chief of the Office of the President Nguyen Canh Dinh, former Minister of Water Resources, designed a new route: from Ben Tre, through the branches of the Mekong River to Tra Vinh - Soc Trang and then down to Ca Mau. The route that day opened the way to break the monopoly of National Highway 1 to the West.

Working with the provinces, Chairman Tran Duc Luong raised the question: Why do we keep talking about "irrigation for freshwater"? Why not raise the issue of "irrigation in saltwater areas"? That was a very suggestive question, going beyond the common way of thinking in the Mekong Delta at that time.

President Tran Duc Luong visited soldiers at station DK1/10 Bai Can (Ca Mau) in January 1998.

The working trip ended in Kien Giang province. The President visited Tho Chu archipelago. At the largest island commune, the President expressed his wish to give the people a gift. The people proposed to build a freshwater tank on the island.

President Tran Duc Luong acknowledged and assigned the Office of the President to take care of it.

A year later, I asked if the water tank was finished and was told that the project was being worked on, with the Ministry of Finance providing funding for the construction. It turns out that the President cannot do whatever he wants. There must be a "process" because the President's Office does not have the money to do it. If we persuade business A or B to spend money to do it, it is easy to fall into a "group interest" situation.

Some officials and reporters accompanied President Tran Duc Luong on his visit to Kien Giang in January 1998.

That business trip left a memorable memory. In the evening in Rach Gia, after dinner, I went to the guest house gate to walk around and saw Mr. Kiem, the President’s bodyguard, hurriedly walking out. I asked: “Where are you going?”. He replied: “The President told me to go to the street to find a bookstore to buy a book to read.”

In the early months of 1998, President Tran Duc Luong visited two Southeast Asian countries, Singapore and Malaysia. In one host country, the President was invited to experience walking across a suspension bridge over a small ravine. With his experience as a geologist, President Tran Duc Luong considered this an easy task. However, the television crew that went ahead to film and the people accompanying him, including us, had a hard time. Some of the people accompanying him chose to take a detour, even though it was longer.

I said: "It's hard to find a bookstore at this hour. I have a good book, please bring it back for the President to read. Sorry for the book being signed."

The next day, when I returned to Ho Chi Minh City, I called the Director of the book distribution company in region 2 to bring the President some new books of various kinds (literature, politics...).

The story about books did not stop there. In Hanoi, Mr. Nguyen Cu, my classmate at the University of General Sciences, Director of the Literature Publishing House, wanted to give the President some books. I suggested: "You just send the official dispatch, we will forward it to the President's Office to arrange it." On the day the Literature Publishing House gave the books, I was not there so I do not know what the atmosphere was like at the gifting ceremony, but it was certainly joyful.

Remembering the first Tet, when the President prepared to wish his compatriots a happy New Year

In 1998, probably in the summer, President Tran Duc Luong visited his hometown in Quang Ngai. For me, the luckiest thing was finding the house of Mr. Vu Huu Dung, who taught Literature and was the homeroom teacher of the President in grade 7.

His wife is teacher Pham Thi Noa, from Quang Ngai. Ms. Noa told me: "Is it that simple for the President to visit his hometown?". I just said yes.

I still remember the first Lunar New Year, when President Tran Duc Luong prepared to wish his compatriots a happy new year. The group of reporters had prepared the text for recording. I noticed a sentence that was not in standard Vietnamese. I discussed it with my assistant, but he hesitated: "The President has already approved it."

However, I thought that this sentence should not be allowed to slip through, so I reported it to Mr. Vu Dung, who was then the Deputy Director of the Office of the President. After reading it, Mr. Dung said: "I will go with you to meet the President". The President smiled happily: "Really? Let's fix it".

88 years old, 65 years in the Party, former President Tran Duc Luong, the red seed that our Party nurtured since his time at Le Khiet High School during the resistance war against the French, rose from a geological soldier. Although I did not have the opportunity to accompany him during his two terms, I always remember him with respect.

Vietnamnet.vn

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/chu-tich-nuoc-tran-duc-luong-ve-tham-que-don-gian-the-2403863.html