Village chief 'fulfills religious duties and is proficient in worldly affairs'

Whatever is difficult… there is a village chief.

Leading us on the clean, paved roads, admiring the spacious stadium and the modern, eye-catching high-rise buildings, Mr. Nguyen Van Chinh (born in 1970) - the head of Hamlet 10, Nghi Kim Commune (Vinh City) proudly said: From being the most or second most difficult unit in the commune, Hamlet 10 has now undergone remarkable changes, there are no more poor households in the hamlet, the number of households is more than 70%, the whole hamlet has more than 100 workers working abroad (USA, UK, Korea, Taiwan, Japan, Germany).

The joyful picture of that parish was woven by the joint efforts, unanimous efforts to overcome difficulties and rise up of the people living "Good life, good religion", including the contribution of the enthusiastic and responsible village chief Nguyen Van Chinh. Taking up the position of village chief in 2012, at that time, Mr. Chinh was just over 30 years old and was the Chairman of the Pastoral Council of Phan Thon Parish. Until now, his enthusiasm and dedication to religion and life have not changed.

Hamlet 10 has 257 households, of which 167 are Catholics. As the head of the hamlet, Mr. Chinh always struggles with the grassroots political system to find solutions to promote economic development, build new rural areas, and maintain solidarity and consensus among the people, with the belief that whatever brings benefits to the people must be done.

For example, when he was just a village chief, he realized that there were more than 30 hectares of agricultural land in the area. During the harvest season, he had to hire machines to dig ditches and clear trash to operate irrigation, which was very difficult, sometimes costing up to 40 million VND. He decided to borrow 800 million VND from the bank to buy an excavator, and from then on, he took on the task of digging irrigation ditches and clearing trash in the village roads and alleys with the main spirit of support.

Or in the construction of new rural areas, in the years 2014-2015, when the State had a policy of supporting cement, Mr. Chinh and the hamlet management board mobilized people to donate land to build intra-hamlet roads. He and his family had excavators, so they supported people in clearing the ground. As a result, the people of hamlet 10 built 4 intra-hamlet roads with a length of 1,600m, the State supported cement with a total value of 800 million VND, and the people donated 800m.²Residential land, garden land, and dismantling 600m of fence. In this campaign, Mr. Chinh's family contributed 60 million VND.

In the period of 2016-2017, the hamlet chief Nguyen Cong Chinh continued to mobilize people to build rural roads based on recycled plastic with a total length of 900m, of which the total amount of money contributed by people was 250 million VND, the hamlet chief's family contributed 45 million VND through supporting the construction of the ground, buying recycled plastic to build intra-hamlet roads at a cheap price, ensuring quality and saving more than half the cost compared to using cement. In 2020, Mr. Chinh continued to voluntarily invest in an 80m intra-hamlet concrete road worth 120 million VND.

Not only does he help the people of hamlet 10 build roads, he also supports the people of neighboring hamlets. For rough roads that make it difficult to travel, Mr. Chinh sometimes even supports asphalt to patch them like the road in hamlet 5.

“Someone asked me if I didn’t feel sorry for having “eaten at home and carried a prison cell” and still used my own money to support? But I think that “God has given me generosity”, I have the conditions to help people and my neighborhood, I lose little but “gain” a lot. That is, I gain the trust of the people, I see my hometown and my village change, I myself feel happy and healthy…”, Mr. Chinh shared.

Because of that mindset, wherever there is difficulty, whatever is difficult, Mr. Chinh is present. For example, he was troubled by the 6,700m2 stadium number 2 in area 10.²But due to rain, wastewater flows in and often gets clogged. If the soil is dumped, it will cost a large sum of money, estimated at several hundred million VND. Village chief Nguyen Van Chinh has researched a solution and reported to the Commune People's Committee about voluntarily upgrading the stadium.

Accordingly, to save costs, Mr. Chinh dug 1.5m deep, 3m wide along the soccer field, then transported the slag back to fill it up and flatten it with a volume of 2,000m3.³The land is worth 110 million VND, and people do not have to contribute. He only calls on neighbors and children working far away to support the reconstruction of the fence and add some sports equipment for people to play and practice. If there is still a shortage, he will contribute.

Even more than a dozen mưng, sanh and black star trees planted around the stadium were voluntarily purchased by Mr. Chinh to plant for shade. In 2022, the village chief of Hamlet 10 continued to mobilize people to carry out intra-field traffic grading, with 88 households participating in donating land to open a road with a total length of 670m, the people contributed 50 million VND, the Hamlet Chief himself contributed 15 million VND.

That is why many people often jokingly say that "the hamlet chief will take care of any difficult matters"! Commenting on the "prisoner" of the parish residential area, Mr. Nguyen Van Hoang - a citizen of hamlet 10 happily said "he is a wonderful, enthusiastic, and responsible hamlet chief!".

Be the first in everything

Not only is he "fulfilling his duty and being good at village affairs", Mr. Nguyen Van Chinh is also known as a pioneer in developing the family economy. Since 2004, he has boldly borrowed capital to invest in a 1.4-hectare farm in a low-lying area to develop pig farming (at times there were up to 120 pigs), porcupines, snakehead fish, and frogs, and has now switched to raising geese, ducks, and fish. He also spent money to build a 300m road connecting the main road to the farm so that "it is convenient for me to travel and for the people to go to the fields".

Previously, there were trucks and tractors, but now, in addition to 7-seat cars for transportation, Hamlet 10's Chief has 2 excavators serving the entire region, and they can't keep up with the work. "I have hired 2 regular workers, who are young men who have returned from military service since 2005. I often tell them to be careful and thoughtful when working, as if they were working for their own family, so that there will be no complaints or criticism. Therefore, the 2 excavators are almost fully booked and operate regularly," Mr. Chinh shared.

The village chief with a gentle face and friendly smile also said that he is quite "lucky" in real estate investment, which is also the "fate" that helps him have a stable economy and have the conditions to support the people and the village. Moreover, "I am the head of the village, I am poor so I cannot call on people to boldly develop the household economy" - Mr. Chinh expressed.

Thanks to his stable economy and generous heart, when people in the village need him, he is always willing to support within the allowed scope, such as lending money to build houses or capital to export labor. In addition, for households in difficulty in the village and commune who are supported with housing, he often comes to help dig foundations and level the ground without taking any wages. For example, with Ms. Dien, 60 years old in village 10, currently living alone, in addition to supporting 5 million in cash, Mr. Chinh also supports machinery to dismantle the old house, clear the ground to build a new house. With the support of the commune's Fatherland Front, the help of village chief Nguyen Van Chinh and the people in the village, Ms. Dien had a new house completed in 2022.

For more than 10 years of "carrying prison and" village duties, Mr. Chinh always kept in mind that being a cadre not only requires being exemplary but also requires sacrifice, first of all in terms of time, besides that it also requires perseverance, patience, not being afraid of conflicts, knowing how to listen and respect people's opinions.

He shared: “I speak the truth, do the truth, openly and transparently, but in “smart mass mobilization”, sometimes I have to have my own way. For example, when calling for support for neighborhood movements, I often go to households in more difficult circumstances and support them with a little money so that they can take the lead in supporting other families. Then for families who donate land to build roads and are facing difficulties, I voluntarily contribute a little money to support them in rebuilding their fences to encourage and motivate them…”.

The village chief of Hamlet 10 also expressed that: As a citizen, whether Catholic or non-Catholic, he has the duty to contribute to the common development of his homeland, helping the village to grow and become more prosperous. Therefore, whether in his position as the village head, member of the Fatherland Front Committee, representative of the People's Council of Nghi Kim commune or member of the Catholic Solidarity Committee of Nghe An province, he always tries his best.

His family has always followed all the Party's guidelines and policies, the State's laws, been exemplary in all local movements and activities, and every year achieved the title of cultural family and sports family of the commune. The four daughters of Chinh and his wife have all received a good education, of which the eldest is currently a lecturer at Hanoi University of Industry, the second is pursuing a business career, the third is studying medicine in Canada, and the youngest is about to graduate from the Diplomatic Academy.

The valuable thing is that despite being busy with economic development, Mr. Chinh has never neglected his role as a hamlet chief; he is present in all big and small matters in the parish. In addition, when the government, organizations and unions in the commune need something, Mr. Nguyen Van Chinh also supports them wholeheartedly. For example, helping the commune dig holes to plant shade trees around Bau Sen area. Or building an asphalt road (120m long, 24m wide) next to the martyrs' memorial house to serve the new rural area. "The total cost is 150 million VND, I support the commune with 50 million VND but I haven't calculated any money yet, just make it beautiful first", Mr. Chinh expressed.

His simple actions spread throughout daily life, becoming a "bridge" of solidarity between religions and non-religious people in the locality. Thanks to that, the movements initiated by Mr. Chinh were enthusiastically supported by the people. For example, in the construction of new rural areas, many families voluntarily donated land and trees to widen roads to beautify alleys and neighborhoods. Some houses even moved back on all three sides of the road, about 1 meter on each side, but they were still happy and voluntary.

Mr. Chinh's role in the new rural construction as well as in implementing the movement of the whole people to unite to build a cultural life in residential areas has been recognized and highly appreciated by the local government. He was also awarded a Certificate of Merit by the Chairman of Nghe An Provincial People's Committee for his achievements in the new rural construction movement in the period 2016-2018.

Commenting on the "prisoner" in hamlet 10, Mr. Hoang Van Tuan - Vice Chairman of Nghi Kim Commune People's Committee (Vinh City) said: Mr. Nguyen Van Chinh is an exemplary hamlet chief, enthusiastic about hamlet and commune work; a Catholic who "respects God, loves the country", "Lives a good life, upholds religion", and has many contributions to building his homeland. Therefore, in June 2023, he was honored to be one of 700 delegates recognized by the Central Emulation and Reward Council as a typical example in the patriotic emulation movement on the occasion of the 75th anniversary of President Ho Chi Minh's call for patriotic emulation.

Talking to us right after returning from the commendation ceremony, Mr. Chinh expressed that it was an unforgettable memory and a great honor in his life, but what made him happiest in his role as a "prisoner" was being trusted by the people.

That was the motivation for him to continue "living the gospel in the heart of the nation to serve the happiness of his compatriots" as the direction that the Vietnamese Bishops' Council instructed in the 1980 General Letter.