Part 3: School faces difficulties because teachers refuse to return dormitory
In Vinh city, recently many schools have encountered difficulties when they need to build, but teachers refuse to return the dormitories or land borrowed from the school to clear the land and construct projects. Among them, some have been retired for more than 15 years, some have bought billion-dollar houses outside, but still refuse to hand over the land to the school.
Controversy at the Provincial Boarding High School for Ethnic Minorities
For many months now, nearly 800 students at Nghe An Province's Ethnic Boarding High School have been living in cramped temporary dormitories. Previously, these students lived in two rows of houses built 40 years ago. At the end of 2023, to make room for the construction of a new dormitory, an old dormitory row was demolished. Therefore, nearly 300 male students were temporarily moved to rooms in the functional practice building, while more than 400 female students were forced into rooms in the remaining old dormitory row.
The new dormitory building is expected to be put into use in 2024. However, the project has been stalled for many months, simply because some teachers were lent the dormitory area by the school to live in,but refused to return the premisesas committed in the previous house loan contract.
The Provincial Boarding High School for Ethnic Minorities was established in 1984 and has been granted land by the Provincial People's Committee at its current location since then. Because many teachers live far away and lack accommodation, the school built a dormitory for them right on the school campus. Since then, many generations of teachers have taken turns staying for free in the dormitories. In cases where they have the means to buy a house outside, they will hand it over to the school, so that the school can lend it to others.
In 2005, to build a cafeteria for students, most of the rooms in these two dormitories were demolished, leaving only three rooms. In 2006, after the cafeteria was completed, realizing that there were still many teachers in difficult circumstances, the school leaders held a meeting and allowed three families of teachers to live in three rooms in the remaining dormitory. In addition, the school lent two other teachers, Mr. Nguyen Van Ky and Ms. Sam Thi Son, a vacant plot of land right next to the school, so that the two families could build a house next to the three old dormitories. The families paid for the new construction themselves.
The contract signed on June 25, 2006 clearly stated that these 5 teachers must commit to "not expanding beyond the designated area; the time of use is until the school has a need, then notify at least 12 months in advance so that families can find accommodation...".
Of the five teachers who signed a contract to borrow the dormitory in 2006, only one returned the house in 2012 after building a private house outside. The house was then transferred to another family to borrow. The remaining households, some of whom had retired and returned to their hometowns 15 years ago, and some of whom had built their own houses outside long ago, still refused to return the dormitory to the school.
Principal Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa said that after becoming principal, she realized that the dormitory buildings for students built in 1984 were too degraded, so the school asked for funding to invest in rebuilding them.
In 2019, after obtaining funding for investment, I worked with 5 households, asking them to move within 1 year so that the school could clear the land to build a dormitory for students as committed in the contract. At that time, only 1 household had no opinion. The remaining households asked for 3 years to arrange to move. The school agreed to the 3-year period.
Ms. Nguyen Thi Kieu Hoa - Principal of Provincial Boarding High School for Ethnic Minorities
However, after the 3-year deadline, in October 2023, the project was started but 5 households still refused to hand over the site for construction. The construction unit had to send many documents to the investor complaining about the delay in handing over the site, causing workers to wait for work and the risk of having their investment capital cut off due to slow progress. After hundreds of meetings and campaigns, by the end of March 2024, 3 households who borrowed the school's dormitory agreed to move to hand over the site. The remaining 2 households resolutely refused to hand over the site, even though many inspection teams had been established and concluded that the entire land area where these households were living was within the school's premises, requiring the households to urgently relocate.
Specifically, the Department of Natural Resources and Environment as well as the Vinh City People's Committee have issued a document concluding that the entire land area where these teachers' families are living is located within the school campus, under the management of the provincial Boarding High School for Ethnic Minorities, and has been granted a Certificate of Land Use Rights to the school. The households are using the land according to the contract for lending collective housing between the school and the teachers signed in 2006. The Nghe An Provincial People's Committee has also issued a document responding to the petition, at the same time requesting 5 households to urgently relocate their assets on the land to hand over the construction site for the project. However, up to now, 2 households have not yet handed over.
Borrowed a house but didn't return it
At Ha Huy Tap High School (Le Loi Ward, Vinh City), for many years there has been a house nestled within the school grounds. This is the school's dormitory, butoccupied by teachers, expanded, renovated, and even rented out. That is the house owned by Mr. Nguyen Duc Canh - a former Literature teacher at the school.
According to the reporter's investigation, this house belongs to a block of dormitories built by Ha Huy Tap High School in 2003 for teachers to use. This block of dormitories previously had 11 rooms, each about 40m wide.2. After the construction was completed, Mr. Nguyen Duc Canh was assigned to the first room, adjacent to the fence next to Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street. Next to this room was a fairly large vacant lot. The entire apartment building was located entirely within the school grounds.
In 2009, Mr. Canh retired but was still given the opportunity by the school to continue living in this dormitory. “While living in the dormitory, while the whole school was on vacation, Mr. Canh arbitrarily renovated and expanded the area, even occupying the empty land next to it to build and open the gate facing Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street,” said a school leader. From the dormitory, which is only about 40m2, currently the house area is up to nearly 90m22, with a width of nearly 13m on Nguyen Dinh Chieu Street.
In 2020, Ha Huy Tap High School built a soccer field for students, so they demolished the dormitory to make room. After receiving notice from the school, the families in the dormitory moved out one by one. Only Mr. Canh's family refused to move. When the school mobilized machinery to dismantle the building, he protested. Therefore, the demolition had to stop until now.
According to Mr. Cao Thanh Bao - Principal of Ha Huy Tap High School, recently due to the large number of students using electric vehicles, the school's parking lot is not enough. The school has a plan to build another parking lot, but the construction site is blocked by the apartment building that Mr. Canh is using. Therefore, the school really wants to demolish this apartment building.
According to the reporter, the apartment building that Mr. Canh is using is in a nice location, right next to a busy intersection. Recently, he also hung a kiosk for rent sign right in front of his house. Talking to the reporter, Mr. Canh admitted that he did not have any legal documents for this house. "Now my circumstances are difficult, my pension is low, only over 7 million VND per month, so I have to rent it out to earn some money," Mr. Canh said.
Regarding the reason for refusing to move, Mr. Canh said that he had contributed to the school, being one of the first teachers to teach at the school. Previously, the old principal had promised to let him stay here.
The principal used to say that if I stay here, I will stay. A few years ago, the school promised to buy me an apartment. But now, even if they bought it for me, I would not agree. I would never move.
Mr. Nguyen Duc Canh - former teacher of Ha Huy Tap High School