The Asia Times, a pan-Asia online news platform, has recently published an article highlighting the high level of public trust in the Communist Party of Vietnam, the sole ruling party in the country. 

Health workers wearing protective suits collect blood samples at a makeshift
rapid testing center in Hanoi on July 31, 2020.( Photo: AFP / Manan Vatsyayana)

The article states that the regime’s ability to deal effectively with the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic would not have been possible without the trust of local citizens. Indeed, it is no exaggeration to say that Vietnam has been one of the world’s leading countries in terms of handling the COVID-19 pandemic.

The article notes that in late July, when the second wave of COVID-19 hit Vietnam, many were anxious to witness how the country would react to the return of the virus. However, within three months, it had successfully flattened the curve of COVID-19 infections.

Whilst Vietnam has been able to bounce back from the crisis, many other countries are still struggling to control rising case numbers.

The country’s success story can largely be attributed to effective closures and lockdowns, high levels of mask wearing among the local population, aggressive contact tracing, and clear communication of risk to the public. These measures have been made possible due to the high public trust in the Communist Party of Vietnam (CPV), the ruling party in the country.

The article outlines that the public still trust the CPV to take care of citizens and to lead the nation out of periods of crises when they occur.

Data collected prior to the COVID-19 outbreak suggests that on average Vietnamese nationals trust a wide range of formal institutions, such as the party, the Government, the military, the President, the National Assembly, and the police.

The article also emphasises that high public trust in the regime presented a favourable environment in which the CPV could handle COVID-19. Social compliance, especially relating to coping with economic losses, social distancing, mask wearing, and sheltering, have all been rigorously maintained in the war against the virus. 

The article attributes public trust to the vivid memories of citizens about how the CPV led the country out of poverty, while there is the perception that the party has made enormous attempts to resolve many of the nation’s issues. 

The Asia Times also offers an insight into how the CPV has earned the public’s trust. This has happened largely through recording consistently high economic growth over the previous decades, with a transformation from one of the poorest countries in the world to an attractive investment destination in the global economy.

The article explains that lifting the nation out of poverty proved the CPV’s capacity to lead in times of crises, especially among generations that lived through the transition process.

Furthermore, the CPV also coped well in two other crises, namely the Asian financial crisis in 1997 and the SARS (severe acute respiratory syndrome) outbreak in the early 2000s, which further increased public trust in their capacity to lead in difficult times. 

Moreover, the public perceives that the CPV cares about the well-being of its citizens, illustrated by the fact that the party has attempted to solve problems that it has publicly acknowledged.

Although the CPV remains very secretive in areas that are sensitive regarding the regime’s legitimacy, many domestic issues are open for public discussion. As such, state media are willing to report issues relating to corruption, the environment, education, economics, and foreign affairs. These issues are even open to televised public debates.

To tackle corruption, since 2016 the CPV has implemented a large-scale anti-corruption campaign, which has disciplined, prosecuted, or imprisoned many senior party members, police, and military officers.

The party has also made considerable efforts aimed at improving the running and policy co-ordination between central and local Governments, which has led to steady improvements in many areas, including health care and tackling corruption. 

The article concludes that high public trust in the CPV prior to COVID-19 gave the party an opportunity to tackle the pandemic in an effective manner.