Model, actress and businesswoman Ly Nha Ky, Vietnam’s first tourism ambassador, has decided to withdraw from the race to become the next tourism ambassador of the country following public criticism, said a local official.

Ly Nha Ky

Speaking with DTiNews, Nguyen Van Tinh, Head of the International Co-operation Department under the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said, “Ly Nha Ky sent a letter informing us of her decision. She explained she had taken the decision due to health reasons. The department has not yet issued an official answer to her decision. We will seek the Vietnam National Tourism Administration’s opinion on this.”

He disclosed that nearly 90% of votes supported Ly Nha Ky to be the tourism ambassador in the term 2013-1014.

With such an overwhelming vote, Ly Nha Ky was much more promising than the two other candidates, Miss Ethnic Vietnam 2011 Huynh Thi Ngoc Han and English teacher Do Thi Hong Thuan.

The official continued to say that Ky may have wanted to quit the race because she feels too tired to face media queries about her university degrees and the certificate that recognised her farther as a war martyr.

In a heartfelt letter, Ky said that her health was not too good and that during her term she suffered numerous slanderous remarks against her, her family and relatives. Mixed public opinion regarding her position really upset Ky’s mother and hurt her other family members, hence her decision to withdraw from the race.

“I did my utmost not to betray trust and expectations of people. Some supported me and some didn’t when I officially took the position. Some people even tried to hurt me in different ways. But for me promoting the country was most important thing,” she wrote.

She said she would continue to run her own business and is happy to give assistance to promote the country’s tourism at any time.

Famous singers such as Hong Nhung and My Tam who were qualified for the position, but they were too busy to take care the work, Mr. Tinh said.

“Some reporters said that My Linh was willing to be assigned as the tourism ambassador, but currently she is acting as South Korean Tourism Ambassador in Vietnam. She would be unable to keep the two titles at the same time,” Mr. Tinh noted.

Public suspicions

Ly Nha Ky’s announcement that she had graduated from Germany’s Real University had previously been met with widespread disbelief as many Vietnamese pointed out that no such academic institution existed in Germany. While some claimed the actress must have been referring to a Realschule or vocational training school, not a university.

Ly Nha Ky’s university degree 

Ky said that, “This is all just a misunderstanding, it’s because students who went to my university don’t use its official name. I will clarify this.” However, due to the strong public pressure, she decided to respond to her critics.

“I went to Alexander Wiegand University which has a slogan “Real people, real work and real action,” therefore the students often call the university “Real”. The word “Real” is the combination of “er” and “al” in the name Alexander as a play on words. The word “Real” matches the slogan,” she explained.

Ky added that her university degree has been checked and certified by the Vietnamese Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism. However, to date, the public suspicion about her university degree has continued.

It has been also rumours that the certificate to recognise Ky’s father as a revolutionary martyr was fake, and she had cynically used it to promote his fame as part of her attempts to secure the position.