Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid visited the district of Dubai in which he grew up, touring the old city and the bustling markets along the Creek.
A video shows the Vice President and Ruler of Dubai – who was born in nearby Shindagha – walking through the Bur Dubai souq with his entourage before catching an abra water taxi across the creek to the gold souq in Deira.
The visit came two days after the sheikh published an open letter on Twitter stressing the importance of being among the people.
"The right place for officials, ministers and leaders is in the field," he wrote in the six-point letter.
"We want to see them among students and teachers or in the markets among traders and investors."
Social media regulation, Emiratisation, the economy and the quality of government services were also addressed in the letter. But the first point was the importance of officials fostering direct dialogue with the public.
Officials should speak to farmers, doctors, widows, mothers and seniors, and visit fishing ports and hospitals, Sheikh Mohammed wrote.
"We want to see them there and hear them from there, not from conference halls and forums, which have multiplied and used up officials’ resources and energies," he said.
The video was posted by Khalifa Saeed Sulaiman, head of the Dubai Protocol Department, who often shares images of Sheikh Mohammed and foreign leaders including Chinese President Xi Jinping and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
