Construction of the project to upgrade Lang Me bridge on National Highway 48: Stuck because of a... bamboo bush!

(Baonghean) - The compensation and support procedures for site clearance and compensation for land acquisition for the project to upgrade Lang Me bridge on National Highway 48 have ensured publicity and transparency.but construction is still stuck.

At the end of July 2016, Thai Hoa Town carried out land acquisition and site clearance for Project Management Board 6 (Ministry of Transport) to upgrade and renovate Lang Me Bridge and Khe Son Bridge (National Highway 48 through Dong Hieu Commune and Nghia Thuan Commune). The upgrading items of these two bridges are part of the Transport Sector Credit Project to renovate the National Road Network Phase 2; in which the approved compensation and site clearance support plan is 1 billion 85 million VND.

The construction of Lang Me Bridge has been underway since early March 2017 but is currently stuck due to site clearance issues. Photo: PV

With the upgrading and renovation of Lang Me bridge, compensation and support must be provided to 9 households in Dong Phu hamlet, Dong Hieu commune. On December 21, 2016, the detailed plan for compensation, support, resettlement and site clearance was approved by the People's Committee of Thai Hoa town in Decision No. 2538/QD-UBND.

To develop this plan, from July 26, 2016, Thai Hoa Town People's Committee issued Notice No. 176/TB-UBND on land recovery to implement the Transport Sector Credit Project to renovate the National Road Network for the second time; on July 27, 2016, issued Decision No. 1421/QD-UBND on approving the plan for compensation, resettlement support and site clearance to implement the project.

On July 29, 2016, the Compensation Council for Resettlement Support and Site Clearance of Thai Hoa Town coordinated with the People's Committee of Dong Hieu Commune and the People's Committee of Nghia Thuan Commune to organize a public meeting to publicize the project implementation policy and Notice No. 176/TB-UBND on land acquisition; information on compensation and support policies; at the same time, publicly disclose excerpts, cadastral maps of land acquisition areas, and site clearance implementation plans. From July 3, 2016, carry out the inventory of assets on land of affected households and individuals (ending on July 15, 2016).

On November 18, 2016, the Council for Compensation and Site Clearance of Thai Hoa Town issued Notice No. 90/TB-GPMB to publicly solicit opinions from households on the compensation and support plan. On November 24, 2016, the Council for Compensation and Site Clearance of Thai Hoa Town held a meeting with households to respond to petitions; on December 8, 2016, continued to coordinate with the authorities of the two communes to hold a meeting with affected households to publicly announce the plan, then send the plan to relevant departments and offices for appraisal and submit to the People's Committee of Thai Hoa Town for approval.

Mother Village Bridge on Highway 48. Photo: PV

On January 4, 2017, the Council of Compensation and Site Clearance of Thai Hoa Town proceeded to pay compensation and support to affected households in Notice No. 104/TB-GPMB. Of the 9 affected households in Dong Hieu Commune, 6 received money; 2 of the remaining 3 households are working abroad, only Mr. Pham Xuan Thanh and Ms. Nguyen Thi Tho still have problems and do not agree with the compensation and support plan.

Mr. Thanh and Mrs. Tho's family has assets on the land, which is a bamboo grove located within the land corridor of Highway 48 and the stream bed managed by the People's Committee of Dong Hieu Commune (compensation value has been calculated in Decision No. 2583/QD.UBND). On March 7, 2016, the Council for Compensation and Site Clearance of Thai Hoa Town issued Notice No. 14/TB-GPMB requesting Mr. Thanh and Mrs. Tho's family to recover assets on the land, including the bamboo grove, to return the site to the construction unit to renovate Lang Me Bridge on schedule.

The notice clearly stated, “By 3:30 p.m. on March 8, 2017, if the family does not cut down, reclaim and return the site to the construction unit, the People's Committee of Dong Hieu Commune will preside over and coordinate with Project Management Board 6 and the Urban Management Department to arrange forces and ensure security for the construction unit to carry out the construction work.” However, Notice No. 14 was not implemented by this household.

After being cleared, the bamboo grove of Mr. Thanh and Mrs. Tho's household still lies at the bottom of the stream, in the construction area of ​​Lang Me bridge. Photo: PV

On March 14, 2017, under the chairmanship of Mr. Pham Van Thach - Vice Chairman of Thai Hoa Town People's Committee, the Council for Compensation and Site Clearance of Thai Hoa Town and the Dong Hieu Commune government invited Mr. Thanh and Mrs. Tho's household to work to resolve the problems. Concluding the meeting, Mr. Pham Van Thach directed the Council for Compensation and Site Clearance of Thai Hoa Town and relevant agencies to check and review the list of architectural works and related documents on land use of Mr. Thanh and Mrs. Tho's household;

Project Management Board 6 made a record of commitment to ensure the safety of the housing project of Mr. Thanh and Ms. Tho and to take responsibility if any incident occurs due to the renovation of Lang Me bridge; at the same time, assigned the Urban Management Department to preside over and coordinate with departments and units to clear the traffic corridor for bamboo bushes according to Plan No. 06/KH.UBND dated January 16, 2017; Official Dispatch No. 139/UBND.QLDT dated March 7, 2017 on the plan to clear the traffic safety corridor.

The conclusion of Vice Chairman of Thai Hoa Town People's Committee Pham Van Thach was clearly stated in Notice No. 33/TB-UBND dated March 15, 2017; and was sent to Mr. Thanh and Ms. Tho's families. On March 16, 2017, the clearance of the National Highway 48 traffic safety corridor for bamboo bushes was carried out.

Lang Me Bridge is located on National Highway 48 but is currently only 7m wide. After renovation, the width of the bridge will be 14m, which will help traffic on National Highway 48 to be smooth and safe, contributing to the socio-economic development of the province. Therefore, it is affirmed that land acquisition to upgrade and renovate the bridge is extremely necessary.

And the People's Committee of Thai Hoa Town has ensured that all procedures for land recovery are fully implemented; at the same time, information on compensation and support for site clearance is publicly and transparently disclosed; the clearance of bamboo bushes to ensure traffic safety on National Highway 48 and for the construction unit to upgrade Lang Me Bridge is in accordance with the law.

There is no "hidden" story

On March 24, 2017, a central newspaper published an article titled “Thai Hoa Town, Nghe An: Need to clarify the irregularities surrounding the land clearance for the expansion of National Highway 48”. The content stated that the Council for Compensation and Site Clearance of Thai Hoa Town was not transparent and public about the compensation and support for land clearance. In addition, it exaggerated the clearance of the traffic safety corridor for bamboo bushes as a “forced land clearance session”; accusing the People’s Committee of Thai Hoa Town of having signs of “irregularities in land clearance” and “group interests”.

At the same time, this article also provided information that "it was inspected at the Department of Natural Resources and Environment" to claim that Mr. Thanh and Ms. Tho's household "did not hand over the land, cut down, and clear bamboo bushes when the State had not yet carried out procedures to reclaim land, compensate for land and assets attached to the land, which is in accordance with the law".

The letter of introduction of the reporter of Business & Law Newspaper is being kept by the Land Use Rights Registration Office (Department of Natural Resources and Environment). Photo: PV

Commenting on the information from this article, Mr. Mai Viet Hung - Vice Chairman of Dong Hieu Commune People's Committee indignantly said that the reporter who wrote the article did not work with the commune to fully grasp the information but reflected one-sidedly, so the content was completely incorrect.

Mr. Hung also affirmed that the process of implementing compensation, support, and resettlement for the project to upgrade and renovate Lang Me bridge is complete, public, and transparent; Dong Hieu Commune People's Committee and Dong Phu Hamlet Executive Committee currently have all documents, including minutes of the people's meetings. For example, the minutes of the meeting on November 24, 2016 to announce the compensation plan for site clearance, clearly stated the recommendations of Mr. Pham Xuan Thanh's wife, Ms. Nguyen Thi Tho.

Mr. Hung said: “We are very upset because the article has caused some controversy among some people in Dong Hieu commune…”. Even Mr. Do Van Chung, one of the affected households in Dong Phu commune, said: “Mr. Thanh and Ms. Tho’s households still have problems and do not agree with the compensation. But the article’s claim that they do not have information about the compensation plan is incorrect. They are always present at every meeting…”.

Regarding the information “inspected at the Department of Natural Resources and Environment” in the article published on March 24, 2017, the representative of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment affirmed that before March 24, 2017, no reporter had registered to work on the land issue in Dong Phu hamlet, Dong Hieu commune. On the afternoon of March 27, 2017, a reporter contacted to inquire about this content. Because it was related to a household’s land, they were referred to the Land Use Rights Registration Office of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment to obtain information. The representative of the Department of Natural Resources and Environment said: “We still keep the letter of introduction and the request for information, which clearly states the time they were introduced to work with the department and professional unit…”.

From what has been verified, it is affirmed that the article “Thai Hoa Town, Nghe An: Need to clarify the irregularities surrounding the land clearance for the expansion of National Highway 48” has one-sided information; the content is misleading, stereotyping, and lacking in constructiveness; has caused negative public opinion in the locality, affecting the progress of the project to improve the national road network.

According to the law, citizens have the right to petition the competent authorities to resolve problems; or to make complaints and denunciations if they discover organizations or individuals violating the law. For Mr. Thanh and Ms. Tho, if they do not agree with the compensation plan for land and assets on the land, they should petition the competent authorities for consideration and resolution.

As for the bamboo clearing, it is to ensure traffic safety on Highway 48 and to implement the project to upgrade and renovate Lang Me Bridge - a very necessary project within the project to renovate the national road network. More than anyone else, his family and the households in the area are the first to benefit; therefore, it is necessary to create conditions for the project to be implemented to ensure progress.

PV Group