Economic issues have so far been the most common topic raised by members of the public on the National Assembly (NA) telephone hotline during the current NA session.
Callers can express concerns and opinions on issues through the hotline for debate by assembly members.
NA Deputy Office Head Viseth Savengsuksa, who is responsible for the hotline, reported that there were 76 calls from June 14 to 22, 27 of which were related to economic issues.
“The largest proportion of hotline calls over the past seven days concerned problems related to livelihoods and poverty reduction, including land concessions,” he said.
Referring to land concessions that violate regulations bringing about compensation problems, while people do not always protest the deals, they ask for fair compensation to be issued quickly, said Mr Viseth.
Disagreement with the increase in luxury goods was another regular comment heard from hotline callers, who objected to the import of such goods.
“People asked if the import of luxury cars was really necessary or appropriate to our developing country,” he said.
Other callers expressed their concerns on environmental protection by raising questions on the use of natural resources, including the use of agricultural land for industrial purposes.
“People are concerned about maintaining a balance between development and environmental protection. They are also suspicious about converting fertile agricultural land for commercial purposes and want the government to conduct more studies on this issue. They wonder about the long-term risks of certain crops which take many years to mature, and are concerned that markets promised today may not be there tomorrow.”
The NA hotline is open for all citizens to express their opinions in the political arena. It aims to facilitate people-participation in NA debates and illicit response from government and judicial organisations.
“Some NA members don't have the details at hand on certain issues, while others can't say everything they want to because of time limitations. New issues might arise during the session, so people can help to inform the session with timely feedback through the hotline while all NA members are here,” said Mr Viseth.
Social issues were the second most common theme brought up by callers, who expressed concerns over drug control, prostitution, social order and education.
The sale of Vientiane 450th anniversary souvenirs was also raised, with one caller expressing his disagreement with producing bracelets copied from other countries for sale to fund the capital's anniversary activities.
Mr Viseth said the hot line was first set up during the assembly's Fifth Legislature.
“It is a way for citizens to express concerns directly to the NA, a communication bridge between the people, the NA, and the government, and an important seed of democratisation,” said Mr Viseth.
By Somxay Sengdara
(Latest Update June 24, 2010)
Author
Topic: Assembly hotline calls focus on economic issues (Read 198 times)
