Law

Waiting for red books for more than 2 decades: The plight of 13 households in Thanh Vinh ward

Tien Dong • August 15, 2025 13:58

For more than 20 years, 13 households in Group 9, Block 11, Thanh Vinh Ward (formerly Cua Nam Ward), belonging to the collective housing area of Nghe An Transport and Trade Corporation (GTVT&TM), have been struggling to live in old collective apartments without being granted red books.

Living in poverty

The collective housing area where households in Group 9, Block 11, Thanh Vinh Ward (Cua Nam Ward - old Vinh City) are living was originally a collective housing area of Nghe An Transport and Trading Corporation (formerly Nghe An Waterway Transport Company, then renamed Nghe An Maritime Transport and Trading Corporation).

In 1965, Nghe An Waterway Transport Company was allocated land by the Provincial People's Committee without collecting land use fees in Cua Nam Ward to build an office and dormitory for its staff and workers. In 1990, the company liquidated and sold the dormitory at a discount to households and individuals for on-site use.

bna_1(4).jpg — The old apartment complex where 13 households in Group 9, Block 11, Thanh Vinh Ward are living. Photo: Tien Dong

In 2004, when the company started to build the Driving Training Center, it agreed to build new houses for 13 households (at that time the apartment building was located in the middle of the land), and the households were responsible for handing over the old apartment building to the company to use as a driving practice ground.

Later, when the Provincial People's Committee approved the overall plan and issued a Land Use Right Certificate for the Driving Training Center, it issued a single certificate covering the area with residential houses. The issued Land Use Right Certificate had a total area of 9,575.8m2.², of which, the area used for Driving Training Center is about 7,687.8m2², and the residential area of households and roads is about 1,888m2².

Ms. Thai Thi Dung - one of the households in this collective housing area said: When the Company valued the collective housing, the family paid 350,000 VND to the company. We thought that after buying the house, we would be granted a red book, but until now, it has been exactly 35 years since the purchase and more than 20 years since we were mobilized to relocate to make way for the construction of the Driving Training Center, we still have not received the Certificate of Land Use Rights (red book).

bna_7(1).jpg — Ms. Thai Thi Dung - one of the households in this apartment complex hopes to soon be granted a red book. Photo: Tien Dong

Ms. Vo Thi Bich Hoi - one of the people elected by the households to represent them to petition the authorities said: Most of the households here are former workers of Nghe An Waterway Transport Company. There are households whose parents were formerly workers of the company, now that the parents have passed away, their children continue to live in this collective house. However, because they do not have a red book, life is always difficult. Many children who want to go abroad to work do not have a red book to borrow from the bank. Many houses are in disrepair and can only be patched up temporarily and cannot be repaired or rebuilt.

"We have repeatedly petitioned the company (before), as well as the local government (currently), but were told that the land is in the company's red book so it cannot be resolved. But now, the company has completed the procedures to return the land to the local government for management, but we are still waiting and still don't know when we will get the red book," Ms. Hoi added.

bna_6(1).jpg — After more than 20 years of relocating the apartment building, the residents have yet to be granted red books. Photo: Tien Dong

At the same time, Ms. Hoi also shared that most of the households living in this apartment complex are in difficult circumstances. There was a case of a mother and her child, the child was infected with Agent Orange, previously there was a benefactor who wanted to support the cost of building a house for them, but because they did not have a red book, they could not get a building permit. In the end, the benefactor had to withdraw.

Need to speed up land allocation and certificate issuance to people

According to our research, previously, Nghe An Transport and Trading Corporation had established a master plan at a scale of 1/500 for the Motor Vehicle Driving Training Center in Cua Nam Ward (old) and the Provincial People's Committee approved the drawing on February 22, 2005.

According to the approved plan, the project includes 7 construction items: Security guard house; Transformer station; Office building; Canteen and staff accommodation; Garage; Car driving practice area; Motorcycle driving practice area. However, because on the planned land there is a row of collective housing that the company has sold at a discount to 13 households since 1990, the canteen and staff accommodation project cannot be implemented.

In 2017, after receiving instructions from the Department of Natural Resources and Environment of Nghe An (now the Department of Agriculture and Environment of Nghe An), Nghe An Transport and Trading Corporation made a request to adjust the planning of the Driver Training Center to reclaim and allocate land to 13 households with private houses.

By October 31, 2017, the Provincial People's Committee issued Document No. 8428/UBND-CN agreeing to allow Nghe An Transport and Trading Corporation to carry out procedures to adjust the planning according to the actual status of use, removing the collective land from the project boundary.

bna_3(5).jpg — The residential area has been separated from the planning of the Driving Training Center. Photo: Tien Dong

On January 10, 2020, the People's Committee of Nghe An province issued Decision No. 108/QD-UBND approving the adjustment of the master plan of the Road Motor Vehicle Driving Training Center in Cua Nam Ward. In particular, the land with the row of apartment buildings where 13 households live was removed from the master plan.

After the procedures for separating the land of the above-mentioned residential area are completed, the land of 1,849.7m²This has been handed over to Vinh City People's Committee (at that time) to manage and carry out the next steps.

On August 7, 2024, the People's Committee of Cua Nam Ward issued a Plan to implement the handling of this collective housing area for urban renovation and reconstruction planning to ensure accommodation for households.

văn bản — Excerpt from the plan to handle the collective housing area of Nghe An Transport and Trading Corporation in Cua Nam ward before. Photo: Tien Dong

According to this plan, the People's Committee of Cua Nam Ward will contract with a consulting unit to survey and design, establish a project plan, and establish an investment policy to submit to competent authorities for approval. At the same time, it will carry out tasks such as: setting up approved planning markers, measuring the planned land; submitting for opinions on financial obligations when allocating land; submitting for approval of specific land prices; establishing a land allocation plan... to proceed to issue Land Use Rights Certificates to the people.

However, up to this point, nothing has been done yet. And what Ms. Vo Thi Bich Hoi and the households in this apartment complex are worried about is that when the land price list in the province has changed, the cost that households have to pay when being allocated land may be much higher than before.

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The ward was recently established on the basis of merging the following wards: Quang Trung, Le Loi, Cua Nam, Dong Vinh, Hung Binh, and Hung Chinh commune. In the coming time, the ward will assign the specialized department to review the old apartment buildings in the area and have a plan to submit to the authorities for consideration, in order to ensure practical benefits for the people.
Mr. Nguyen Sy Dieu - Chairman of Thanh Vinh Ward People's Committee

Tien Dong