Meeting the village headman with excellent community mobilization skills in Tan Yen parish.
(Baonghean.vn) - In recent years, many Catholic parishioners in Nghi Loc district have emerged as exemplary models of effective community mobilization. Mr. Nguyen Van Nguyen, head of Hamlet 11, Nghi Dien commune, is one of them.
In 2010, Mr. Nguyen Van Nguyen was trusted and elected as the village head by the people of Hamlet 11, Nghi Dien Commune. Before taking on this job, he faced many difficulties. His wife, children, and relatives wanted him to focus on family business, as taking on the role of village head would take up too much time and effort, and he might have to endure gossip and criticism from others. Initially, this distracted him. But he thought that since the Party branch had encouraged him and the people trusted him, he had to persevere.
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| Mr. Nguyen Van Nguyen, a parishioner of Tan Yen Parish (Nghi Dien - Nghi Loc), and village head, shared: “Once entrusted by the people to be the village head, I must not let them down. To achieve this, I must sacrifice my time, strive to learn, and be deeply involved in the activities of the village and commune in order to meet the requirements of the task.” (Photo: Nhat Tuan) |
When he took on the role of village head, Mr. Nguyen spent a lot of time familiarizing himself with the new job. Back then, most of the village roads and the courtyard of the village cultural center were muddy during the rainy season. He thought that the immediate priority was to raise the level of the cultural center's courtyard, creating favorable conditions for villagers to hold meetings.
After seeking approval from the Party branch and the village's Front Committee, he mobilized friends to contribute 3 million VND to help the village raise the level of the courtyard of the village's cultural center. Then, he advised the Front Committee to raise 30,000 VND from each household to fund the concreting of the newly leveled courtyard.
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| Tan Yen Parish. Source: giaoxugiaohovietnam |
In 2012, Hamlet 11, along with other residential areas in Nghi Dien commune, implemented land consolidation and exchange according to Directive 08 of the Provincial Party Committee. This was considered a major challenge for the new hamlet leader.
Most of the rice fields in Hamlet 11 are sloping, with only 8 narrow internal field roads. According to the conversion plan, this number must be tripled, with roads 5 meters wide and irrigation ditches on both sides. This means each plot of land will have to contribute 46 meters of road.2Along with 215,000 VND for land consolidation and reallocation. Many people disagreed because they were reluctant to contribute. They argued that the fields could still be used for production as they were, so why waste land and resources on reallocation?
Through numerous village meetings and individual encounters, Mr. Nguyen analyzed and explained the benefits of land consolidation to the villagers. During the campaign, he cited successes in other localities within the district to build trust among the people. As a result, within just three months of implementation, the entire 30 hectares of farmland in Hamlet 11 were consolidated and exchanged according to plan.
The next major challenge, which he also successfully overcame, was the implementation of rural road construction according to New Rural Area standards in 2016. Similar to the previous land conversion campaign, he had to work with the village's Front Committee to conduct ideological work to gain the people's support for the initiative.
The most difficult part of the implementation was land clearance to widen the road to meet the required standards. He persistently campaigned and persuaded people through numerous neighborhood meetings, integrating the message into other meetings of various organizations. Mr. Nguyen personally visited each family still facing difficulties to understand their concerns.Through this process, he discovered some difficult "bottlenecks" that needed to be addressed. Therefore, he and the Front Committee intensified efforts to encourage economically well-off families or families with significant influence in the community to take the lead, setting an example for other families to follow.His own family was the first to donate land for road construction, with an area of 30 square meters. His efforts and those of the village's Front Committee were successful. More than 1,600 square meters of garden and residential land were donated by the villagers, creating a vibrant atmosphere in the community.
The difficulties didn't end there. The real challenge was mobilizing funds to pave the roads with concrete according to New Rural Area standards. Mr. Nguyen Van Xuan, a resident of Hamlet 11, Nghi Dien Commune, said: “Initially, there were many conflicting opinions. But Mr. Nguyen and the Hamlet Front Committee analyzed the situation, publicly disclosing the quantity of materials and the contribution amount per household for each road section, and developing a construction plan with public supervision. Finally, the people agreed.”
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| The internal village roads of Hamlet 11, Nghi Dien Commune, have been rebuilt according to New Rural Area standards. Photo: Nhat Tuan |
Thanks to his skillful mobilization of the people, leveraging the voices of the parish officials of Tan Yen, and with partial financial support from the commune's People's Committee, Mr. Nguyen successfully constructed rural concrete roads that meet the standards of the New Rural Development program. Currently, more than half of the total 1600m of road cleared and widened has been concreted. The narrow, muddy village roads of the past have now been replaced with smooth, dry concrete roads, making travel easier. The face of the countryside, from the fields to the residential areas, has become more vibrant.
Fifteen years ago, Hamlet 11 was the poorest residential area in Nghi Dien commune, but it has now risen to a relatively prosperous level. The majority of the residents in Hamlet 11 are Catholic. In recent years, the hamlet has consistently been one of the leading units in all local movements. The hamlet's leader, Nguyen Van Nguyen, has played a significant role in this achievement.
Along with fulfilling his religious duties as a follower of God, Mr. Nguyen also took good care of worldly affairs. As the village head, he was always close to the people, understood their needs, and dedicated much time to mobilizing them to actively and effectively participate in local emulation movements. With these admirable qualities, village head Nguyen Van Nguyen deserves the title the people have given him: "Mr. Nguyen, the skilled community organizer."
Comrade Nguyen Huu Tho - Standing Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee, Head of the Mass Mobilization Block of Nghi Dien commune, said: "Mr. Nguyen is a person who works wholeheartedly for the people and for the movement of the hamlet and the locality. He always maintains unity and solidarity within the Hamlet Front Committee; between the hamlet head and the secretary, head of the Front Committee and members of the political system."
In particular, he has forged a good relationship with the Pastoral Council of Tan Yen Parish to effectively promote and encourage parishioners to live virtuous lives. The commune's mass mobilization team has adopted the model from Hamlet 11 to expand the movement to other hamlets in the locality.”