The feelings of a single woman longing for a piece of land to settle down

A difficult situation

We met her at a coffee shop on the side of Nghe An - Xieng Khouang road, near the foot of the Quan Bau crossroads overpass (Vinh City). In the small, cramped, deep-seated shop, cluttered with items, she sadly confirmed: "I am the person who submitted a petition to the Newspaper...". She is Nguyen Thi Thuy, 52 years old, with permanent residence at the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled (Hamlet 8, Nghi Phu Commune, Vinh City), a citizen who submitted a petition to Nghe An Newspaper at the end of March 2019.

In her petition to the newspaper, Ms. Thuy presented her "lifelong wish" of wanting relevant authorities to consider her difficult situation and allow her to buy land at the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled, where she and her children have lived for 30 years or so.

Regarding her situation, Ms. Thuy informed: In 1989, she was contracted to work at the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled and was arranged to live in the center's dormitory. At that time, the Center was facing many difficulties. Together with the staff and employees in the unit, she participated in making each dashboard piece to build the fence and workshop; selling each set of clothes produced by the Center to raise money to support disabled students... When the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled had no jobs for contract workers, Ms. Thuy reluctantly became a saleswoman at the kiosk built by the Center to sell the products made.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy presented to reporters. Photo: Nhat Lan

Although she tried her best to sell goods and pay the kiosk fees in full, ironically, in 2000, the center took back the kiosk to rent to outsiders. At that time, she had nothing to do with the center anymore, but she was still able to live in the apartment complex to gradually earn a living to raise her three children.

In July 2018, when the apartment buildings were demolished to divide the land among the families living there, because she was not given land, she had to rent a small stall to both have a place to live and sell small items to make a living.

In the petition, Ms. Thuy expressed: “The State’s policy of eliminating collective housing is to divide land among households living in collective housing areas and not having houses or land. I was also a member of the center for a time, and I lived in the collective housing area with my small family for 30 years, not someone from the street asking for a place to stay. Why can’t I buy land like other families…???”.

"I was also a resident of the center for a while, living in the apartment complex for 30 years, not an outsider asking for a place to stay."

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy

Mr. Nguyen Huu Thanh talks about the situation of Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy. Photo: Nhat Lan

In the apartment complex, many people have confirmed that the content of Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy's petition is true. Mr. Nguyen Huu Thanh, one of the people who lived in the apartment complex of the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled from the beginning, said that there were all poor households here, but Ms. Thuy was the one with the most difficult situation.

"We have repeatedly requested to consider allocating a plot of land to Ms. Thuy's household because she also worked at the center for a time, has lived here for a very long time, and is in very difficult circumstances..."

Mr. Nguyen Huu Thanh

Mr. Thanh said: “Because the center encountered difficulties, Ms. Thuy’s work was interrupted. In addition, her marriage and children were also interrupted because she had only one child. Since the couple broke up, she had to stay single and raise her three children. In 2014, when the price of the collective housing was determined, the center’s leaders did not price the house for Ms. Thuy because she was no longer a member of the center. However, in the meetings to review the subjects applying for land allocation in the collective housing area, we received many suggestions to consider allocating a plot of land to Ms. Thuy’s household like other cases. After all, she had worked at the center for a while, had lived here for a very long time, and was in very difficult circumstances, while having no other place to live…”.

The residential area of ​​the Center for Education for the Disabled has been demolished, infrastructure built and plotted. Photo: Nhat Lan

Need to consider reality

In the process of reviewing and approving the subjects applying for land allocation at the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled, the investor, Nghi Phu Commune People's Committee, assessed that Nguyen Thi Thuy's household was eligible for land allocation and land use right certificate issuance. Based on that, on August 23, 2017, Nghi Phu Commune People's Committee submitted Document No. 101/TTr-UBND to Vinh City People's Committee, including Nguyen Thi Thuy's household. However, as the representative of Nghi Phu Commune People's Committee said, during the approval process at the city level, Nguyen Thi Thuy's household was not accepted.

According to the available documents, the collective housing area of ​​the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled has 13 households. Of these, 12 households were allowed to buy collective housing liquidated by the center on October 30, 2014 (Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy's household was not allowed to buy the liquidated house). During the process of approving the land allocation subjects, Vinh City People's Committee determined that the liquidation documents of the households' houses after July 1, 2014, the time frame according to regulations, became one of the conditions for land allocation without auction.

The document of Nghi Phu Commune People's Committee shows that after reviewing and collecting opinions, Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy's household is eligible to be allocated land by the State and granted a land use right certificate. Photo: Nhat Lan

However, there are 10 households living in the collective housing area, without houses and land in the city, so the Vinh City People's Committee approved the subjects to be allocated land. For the remaining 2 households (already having houses and land in other wards in the city) and Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy's household, the Vinh City People's Committee sent a document asking for opinions from relevant departments. In Official Dispatch No. 294/STNMT-QLDD dated January 16, 2019, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment replied to the People's Committee of Vinh City: "Based on the provisions of Decree No. 47/2014/ND-CP dated May 15, 2014 of the Government, Decision No. 58/2015/QD-UBND dated October 13, 2015 and Decision No. 39/2018/QD-UBND dated September 10, 2018 of the Provincial People's Committee, the proposal of the People's Committee of Vinh City to allocate residential land for 3 cases that do not meet the prescribed conditions is not a basis for settlement". From here, the People's Committee of Vinh City affirmed that the request of Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy's household to be allocated a plot of land in the collective housing area is not feasible (Official Dispatch No. 1248/UBND-TNMT, dated March 7, 2019).

It is known that the Department of Natural Resources and Environment and the Vinh City People's Committee must comply with the regulations when handling and reviewing the case of Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy's household. However, with the current situation of this family, it is truly pitiful. Therefore, it is necessary to consider the fact that she used to be a member of the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled, lived continuously for 30 years in the collective housing area, and has no house or land anywhere else in the city for review. Do not let the sad reality happen that implementing the project to eliminate collective housing in the city pushes a household into a homeless situation. As the former director of the Vocational Training Center for the Disabled, Mr. Phan Van Mat (also signed on Ms. Thuy's petition), in addition to confirming that she worked at the center for a period of time after the Department of Labor, Invalids and Social Affairs signed a labor contract, also said: "The approval of land allocation must be based on the provisions of the law. However, we hope that the competent authority will consider the actual situation so that her family has a place to live...".

It is necessary to reconsider to avoid the sad reality that implementing the project to eliminate collective housing in the city leaves a household homeless.

Ms. Nguyen Thi Thuy had to rent a small stall to both have a place to live and sell small items to make a living. Photo: Nhat Lan