Please withdraw from the list of poor households: A happy story in the mountainous land of Thach Ngan

(Baonghean) - If certified as a poor household, they will enjoy support policies on healthcare, education, housing, preferential credit loans, vocational training... However, in the mountainous area of ​​Thach Ngan, Con Cuong district, 15 households have voluntarily submitted applications to remove their names from the list of poor households. They have voluntarily given up the benefits from the poor household standard to strive to improve their lives with their own abilities, reducing pressure on society.

15 households of Thach Ngan commune requested to be removed from the list of poor households, including Mr. and Mrs. Vi Van Thoai, Luong Van Chau, Vi Van Hung, Lo Thi Huong, Lo Thi Thuy, Lo Quoc Hung, Lo Van Diep, Lo Doan Xo, Vi Thi Huong, Vi Thi Phuong, Luu Dinh An, Luu Dinh Thoi, Luu Dinh Nga, Lo Xuan Dien, and Lu Thi Toan.

Please be free from poverty

The first person to apply to be removed from the list of poor households in Thach Ngan was Mr. Luu Dinh An (69 years old), Thach Tien village.

Mr. An's family was voted poor by the villagers at the end of 2011, but in June 2012, they withdrew. For Mr. An, a retired soldier who had been through more than 30 major and minor battles and a party member, being recognized as a poor household was a real pain, not a matter of conscience, even though the poor household criteria also stemmed from the mutual love and affection of the villagers for him. Mr. An is a 2/3 disabled veteran, 4/4 disabled veteran, carrying Agent Orange; has 3 children, the eldest and youngest have the after-effects of dioxin (the eldest died at the age of 27).

Mr. An said: "The people of Thach Ngan still have many difficulties, my family does too, but I have never thought that I would be a poor household. The thing is, in 2011, I had a bladder tumor and had to spend a lot of time in the hospital for treatment. Seeing that my family was really in difficulty, at the end of 2011, the villagers sympathized and voted for me. In March 2012, when I was out of danger, I told my wife (former Youth Volunteer Nguyen Thi To) that: "I have recovered from my illness, my family has less difficulty, I am submitting an application to withdraw from the list of poor households, ma'am". Then I reported to the Party cell, asked the villagers and submitted an application to the commune to withdraw my name from the list of poor households".

Through investigation, Mr. An's two children have their own families. In addition to Mr. An's pension, Mrs. Nguyen Thi To now raises livestock and poultry to earn more income. Mr. An confided: "I am the Chairman of the Commune Elderly Association, a health teacher, a member of the mediation team... All of these positions do not have a salary, but in return, I am close to the villagers. Regarding my request to be removed from the list of poor households, it is because I also want to set an example for my children and grandchildren. Do not rely on others, but strive to rise up with your own efforts. After I submitted the request, a number of more families requested to be removed from the list of poor households...".

Ms. Lo Thi Huong (50 years old) in Dong Tam village wrote a request to be removed from the list of poor households on November 7, 2012. In the request sent to the Party Committee, People's Council, and People's Committee of Thach Ngan commune, she wrote: "...In 2012, my family was still a poor household in the village. After 10 months of struggle, with the help of the village, especially the village women's association, my family's economic life has improved. Now I write this request to my superiors to remove my family from the list of poor households...".

Ms. Lo Thi Huong introduces the poverty alleviation livestock model.

When asked about withdrawing the application, Ms. Huong was embarrassed: "What can I say now...". Her husband passed away, Ms. Huong raised 4 children alone, so in 2011, the villagers voted her family as a poor household. After nearly a year, when she saw her children grow up, and had the help of the villagers and the women's association in doing business, she submitted an application to withdraw from the list of poor households. Ms. Huong said: "Looking up, I am not as good as anyone, but looking down, there are still many people who are struggling more than me. I have to withdraw to save the place for others...". Up to this point, Ms. Huong's family economy has basically stabilized. She cultivates 4 sao of rice fields, each year she gets about 2 tons of rice; raises 3 litters of pigs, each litter about 30 pigs, each year she sells about 1.2 tons of pork, earning a profit of 25 - 30 million VND.

Mr. Lo Doan Xo in Dong Tam village runs a rice milling service business.

In Dong Tam village, in addition to Ms. Lo Thi Huong's family, there are 3 households that have applied to escape poverty, Mr. Lo Doan Xo's family is one of those 3 households. Mr. Xo has 3 young children, was voted a poor household, his family has benefited from many support policies of the State. From exemption from school fees for his children, preferential loans to support for electricity, food subsidies, Tet gifts... Besides raising sows and pigs, Mr. Xo borrowed capital to do animal feed business, and at the same time bought a rice milling machine to serve the villagers. Thanks to combining the jobs well, his family's economy is now stable, not only providing enough food, clothing, and education for his children, but also starting to have money to expand production and business. Taking us to visit the barn system, Mr. Xo said that every year he raises 3 batches of pigs, each batch has over 40 pigs, sells about 2 tons of pork each year, earning about 40 million VND in profit, besides, he also works as a bricklayer to have more income. "Being a poor household is very beneficial, but holding on to this title is really not right. There are many families in Thach Ngan who are very struggling, I am young and it is very unsightly to call myself a poor household..." - Mr. Xo said.

Poverty escape applications of households in Thach Ngan commune.

There should be honor.

In Thach Ngan commune, everyone is happy to talk about families applying to be removed from the list of poor households. According to the Chairman of the Commune People's Committee, Ngan Van Nhung, in early 2012, when the Commune Party Committee issued Resolution 49 on poverty reduction, people's awareness of rising up has improved a lot. In addition to the 15 households that have applied, there are currently a number of families who have directly requested the Village Management Board to be removed from the list of poor households. Mr. Nhung excitedly said: "These households have all made great efforts to increase production to support their family economy. They voluntarily applied to be removed from the list of poor households because they see that their family economy is relatively stable. For example, Ms. Lu Thi Toan's family in Ke Gia village has been selected by the village as a poor household for several years. Now, they see that they have organized production, raised livestock, and have a buffalo, a motorbike, a television, etc., so they have applied to be removed from the list."

We have seen Ms. Toan's application, the content is very simple and sincere. Ms. Toan wrote: "Up to now, my family has been very poor. With the care and support of the Village Management Board and the Commune People's Committee, our family has been considered to enjoy the poor household policy for 3-4 years now. Currently, I still have 4 children studying, but the family's economy is stable, the house has a buffalo, a motorbike, a TV. So I am writing this application to be removed from the list of poor households, to give way to families who are still poor like my family before...".

Thach Ngan Commune has 1,332 households and 5,905 people. It is a commune with many difficulties in Con Cuong district. In 2012, Thach Ngan had 42.12% poor households. However, after Resolution 49 of the Commune Party Committee, the poverty rate in 2013 decreased to 38.2% of households. In the 2014 selection period, the number of poor households decreased to 31.8%.

The officials of Con Cuong District Party Committee also shared the joy with the officials of Thach Ngan commune. Mr. Phung Van Mui - Deputy Head of the Propaganda Department said that when he heard that some households had written a petition to withdraw from the list of poor households, he immediately thought of having to propose to his superiors to promptly commend and reward them. Because according to him, the problem of poor households and policies for poor households is a rather difficult problem at the grassroots level, so having people who proactively apply to escape poverty will be a very good example for other families to follow. As for Deputy Secretary of the District Party Committee Vi Van Son: "I was very happy to hear that some households voluntarily submitted a petition to withdraw from the list of poor households. When I went to Thach Ngan to find out the reason, I witnessed the households making great efforts in labor and production to develop the economy. With these households, it is clear that they have a very high awareness of escaping poverty...".

Coming to Thach Ngan, witnessing families who have voluntarily given up the benefits of the poor household standard to strive to improve their lives with their own abilities is truly a joy. The Party's policies and the State's policies towards poor households are the superiority of the regime, but because of that, there are many families who have a mentality of waiting and relying on it, and even in some localities, bad things have happened from the voting and selection of poor households. Therefore, the families who have written applications to escape poverty in Thach Ngan are truly examples for society to follow.

Nhat Lan