VietNamNet Bridge - More and more high-ranking Vietnamese officials are using email and social media to maintain contact with the public.

The page of Minister of Health Nguyen Thi Kim Tien.

Whether getting both support and critical comments, the Minister of Health has shown herself to be a young politician, who knows how to use social media to convey messages and is ready to receive critics.

Last week, to prepare material for this article, VnEconomy tried to send an email asking for an interview with huynhductho@danang.gov.vn.

This is the mailbox of Huynh Duc Tho, the new Chairman of Da Nang city.

Sending emails for an interview is a normal method of reporters. However, this email was sent to check whether the address is regularly checked and answered.

A month ago, when assuming the position, Mr. Tho announced his mail address, as a bridge to be "closer to people".

Speaking to the media recently, Tho said: "People cannot get into my office because they have to pass through many doors. Opening my email means that I can hear the voice of the people and open the door for them to see me."

Four days after VnEconomy sent the email, Chairman Huynh Duc Tho sent an answer. Whether or not the information was complete, it is more important to know that his email was not just political etiquette.

The email was one of 40-50 emails received per day by Tho. He usually checks the emails himself but when he was busy, he asks secretaries to check and print the emails

Also noteworthy is the launch of the fanpage on Facebook of Health Minister Nguyen Thi Kim Tien.

On March 11, two weeks after officially launching the page, the Minister received nearly 800 questions. "My colleagues and I answered about 50%, the rest are being handled," Tien wrote in an article on her fanpage.

"We always put the interests of the people on top when developing policies and plans related to health care. So through this fanpage and my personal page, I’m glad to receive questions, suggestions, thoughts, and your aspirations," the Minister wrote.

If this message is delivered on official forums and in official speeches, it most likely that it will not get much applause. But through the fanpage, Tien is regaining a lot of sympathy from the public.

She wrote it in a witty way: "Supporting the health sector means supporting the career of human health care, including the health of yourself - the most valuable asset of this life. (You will take from what you love)!”

Earlier, on New Year’s Eve, Minister Tien wrote on her “wall”.

The lunar New Year holiday was also a chance for many other politicians to show their closeness to the people.

Than Duc Nam, deputy director of the Office of the National Assembly, posted a photo of himself in a traditional men’s ao dai and a Tet wish.

Nam regularly updates his photos at important events on his Facebook. Creating a Facebook account since 2009, Nam has uploaded hundreds of photos on his page, which has nearly 3,500 "Likes" at present.

Politicians using social media is not new, and it is gradually becoming more popular in Vietnam. In a recent article, lawyer Nguyen Van Duc from Kinh Luan Law Firm said that this represents a significant change in management practices in Vietnam. This will help reduce the gap between officials and people.

"Hopefully, more senior leaders will make public their personal accounts on social networks for people in 2015,” Duc said.

VNeconomy