Three generations of commune chairmen have sold land illegally?

Selling land illegally and in violation of regulations.

For months now, Mr. Nguyen Van Tien (48 years old, My Thanh commune) has been frequently approached by commune officials who "persuade" him to return the land to the government. In return, the commune will reimburse him both the principal and interest he paid to purchase the land previously. Mr. Tien is one of hundreds of households in My Thanh commune living along both sides of National Highway 7 who have been sold additional land by the commune's leaders to expand their land holdings over the past nearly 15 years.

The row of land behind the houses that residents allege the commune sold to households. Photo: Tien Hung

“They said they would return the full amount, but I didn’t agree,” Mr. Tien recounted. Years ago, Mr. Nguyen Van Tien bought a 105m2 plot of land (7m wide, 15m long) on ​​National Highway 7 to run a furniture business. A few years ago, like many other households, Mr. Tien heard that the commune government was selling the land behind his house, in the Cay Mut field. “Because I wanted to expand my area, I went to inquire, and after several negotiations, we agreed on a price of 15 million dong for 35m2,” Mr. Tien explained. The additional 35m2 he bought was 7m wide and 5m long, connecting to the old plot of land he had purchased earlier. At that time, Mr. Nguyen Van Dinh was the Chairman of the People’s Committee of My Thanh Commune.

The plot of land that Mr. Nguyen Van Tien's family bought from the commune cost 15 million VND. Photo: Pham Bang.

Similarly to Mr. Tien, the family of Ms. Luu Thi Hue (42 years old), who lives nearby, also resolutely refused to cancel the land purchase contract and return the land to the commune, despite repeated attempts by commune officials to persuade them. “They even held meetings inviting me and many others to attend to try and convince us,” Ms. Hue said. She recounted that about three years ago, like other households living along National Highway 7 in My Thanh commune, she decided to spend tens of millions of dong to buy additional land at the back, aiming to expand her living space. After her husband returned from working abroad, her family built a solid three-story house on this land. “The purchase contract was clear. Now that we’ve built such a solid house, who will compensate us? How can we return it now?” Ms. Hue said.

The land that the commune illegally sold to Ms. Hue's family has now been used by her to build a sturdy three-story house. Photo: Tien Hung

Noticing irregularities in the illegal land sales by the commune leaders, many residents in Hamlet 12 filed complaints with relevant authorities. According to Mr. Ho Sy Vy, one of the complainants stated that the My Thanh Commune People's Committee sold over 100 plots of land across several generations of chairmen, including residential, agricultural, and forest land. “For many years, the commune leaders have illegally converted and sold hundreds of plots of land in areas such as Cay Mut, the village cultural center, the Cay De rice paddy area, Ve Khoi, Ke Market, Cay Dua, the primary school gate, and the Ba Bay sacred forest… We have submitted complaints to the Yen Thanh District People's Committee but have not received a specific response, so we have to continue submitting complaints to higher levels,” Mr. Vy said.

Mr. Ho Sy Vy (left) working with reporters. Photo: Pham Bang

After some residents discovered the incident and filed complaints with the authorities, the leaders of My Thanh commune urgently tried to persuade the people to return the land. However, the majority of residents refused. Only a small number, including village and commune officials or relatives of commune leaders, agreed to accept the money back in order to cancel the purchase contract and return the land to the commune.

Are local leaders also buying land illegally?

Two adjacent villas belonging to the family of Mr. Nguyen Van Nam - former Chairman of the People's Committee of My Thanh commune - are also believed to have been built on land that the commune sold illegally. Photo: Tien Hung

According to investigations by reporters from Nghe An Newspaper, it's not just Mr. Tien and Ms. Hue; many households in My Thanh commune have been illegally sold land by local leaders. The incidents began in 2004, when Mr. Nguyen Van Nam was the Chairman of the People's Committee of the commune, then continued through Mr. Nguyen Van Dinh, and now Mr. Nguyen Van Thach. These plots of land were priced from 15 to 25 million VND, with some plots even reaching 150 million VND. Notably, among those who purchased land illegally were Mr. Nguyen Van Nam – the former Chairman of the People's Committee of My Thanh commune – and Mr. Nguyen Van Thach – the current Chairman. “Both of them bought additional land to expand their area. When they were reported, the commune's land cadastral officers came to measure the land, and according to my investigation, it has now been converted into a land lease contract,” said Mr. Ho Sy Vy, the person who filed the complaint about land violations in My Thanh commune.

According to our investigation, the leaders of My Thanh commune not only sold land to allow residents to expand their land holdings, but also secretly sold many plots of land that were originally rice paddies under Decree 64. When questioned about these issues, Mr. Nguyen Van Thach admitted that "the commune sold some plots of land illegally." However, the Chairman of the People's Committee of the commune refused to provide further details and claimed to be busy.

Previously, Nghe An Newspaper also published an article titled "Irregularities in encroached land" reflecting many violations in the sale and lease of land by the leaders of My Thanh commune. Accordingly, many plots of land in the area encroached upon by My Thanh residents in Hoa Son commune were leased and sold illegally by My Thanh leaders...

Speaking to Nghe An Newspaper about the issue of residents accusing the leaders of My Thanh commune of illegally selling land, Mr. Nguyen Thanh Ha - Vice Chairman of Yen Thanh District People's Committee - said that this matter is complex, so the district has transferred the file to the Yen Thanh District Police for investigation. The investigation is currently underway, so there is no final conclusion yet.