Ho Chi Minh City: Nearly 200 households along Vo Van Kiet Street, District 6, have been living in dilapidated, polluted houses for 20 years, unable to repair or relocate due to a "suspended" project.
At noon on March 20, Mrs. Nguyen Thi Thanh Van, 64 years old, sat in front of her 21 square meter house, sweltering hot. The apartment is less than ten meters from Vo Van Kiet Street, the section across Lo Gom Bridge, but there is only a 1.5 meter wide dirt road leading to it. Inside the house, the walls have many cracks that have long been supported by iron bars, but it cannot be rebuilt because it is in the clearance area.
Ms. Van's family lives in a cramped, dilapidated house for many years. Photo: Dinh Van
Ms. Van said that she and her husband bought this house from 1998 to 2004 when the house was included in the planning area for the construction of a residential and apartment complex in the project area 3 - Nam Ly Chieu Hoang. Since then, the family has not been able to transfer or renovate the house even though it has deteriorated over time.
Nearly 10 years ago, the project investor agreed to compensate her family with 6 million VND per square meter. According to Ms. Van, at that time, after deducting expenses, she received about 110 million VND to move. Thinking that the compensation was too low while the apartment on the outskirts of the city at that time was worth at least 1 billion VND, Ms. Van did not agree.
For the past 20 years, her family has had to live in a small, makeshift house. Every time it rains or the tides rise, the whole family struggles to prevent flooding and has to raise the floor. Because her daughter’s family lives with her, but she cannot build a house, she has had to add an attic with an iron frame and corrugated iron to sleep on. The ground floor has just enough space to park three motorbikes, a kitchen, and a bathroom.
"My family really wants to move elsewhere, but there needs to be appropriate compensation or resettlement support policies. If we accept such a low amount of money and leave, the whole family won't know where to live," said Ms. Van.
400 meters away, the family of Mr. Truong Ngoc Thanh, 54 years old, also suffered from a dilapidated and cramped house. For many years, his family of 9 had to live in a ground-floor house of just over 60 square meters. Mr. Thanh inherited a piece of land of about 2,800 square meters located in the planning area, but for decades he has not been able to transfer or build on it.
Mr. Thanh's house walls are cracked widely but cannot be renovated or rebuilt because it is located in a planning area that has been suspended for the past 20 years. Photo: Dinh Van
Despite owning a large plot of land, his family cannot build a new one and instead lives in the old apartment left by his parents. Mr. Thanh said that 7 years ago, the investor offered compensation of 3 million VND per square meter, but the family did not agree. According to the homeowner, although they could receive a large amount of money based on the area of land they own, the family finds the compensation "unreasonably low", not to mention many plots of land next to the house that are not in the planning area are 20 times more expensive.
Over time, Mr. Thanh's house's walls have become more and more cracked, the corrugated iron roof leaks, the ceiling is stained with yellow water, and moldy. Every time he has to ask the ward for repairs, it takes time. This also puts the whole family in a dilemma because it is difficult to live there but it is impossible to sell or move.
"My wife and I have lived in temporary housing for decades and now we want our children and grandchildren to have a better life. If there is a suitable compensation and resettlement mechanism, I am willing to move so that my children and grandchildren can have a better life," said the 54-year-old man.
Mrs. Van and Mr. Thanh's households are two of 188 households facing difficulties and problems with the compensation and relocation mechanism at the Zone 30 - Nam Ly Chieu Hoang project that has been "suspended" for 20 years. According to the original plan, the project to clear a land area of more than 123,000 m2 to build townhouses and apartments was later adjusted down to more than 74,000 m2.
The project was once expected to meet the housing needs of nearly 4,000 people along with a medical station, school, and green park, but to date there are only temporary, degraded houses nestled among the neighboring spacious residential areas. The surrounding area is overgrown with grass, mountains of garbage, polluted canals, and dusty roads.
Mr. Nguyen Huy Thang, Chief of Office of District 6 People's Committee, said that the project Area 3 - Nam Ly Chieu Hoang was assigned by the city to Binh Phu Investment Joint Stock Company to implement since 2004 but is still at a standstill, nearly 200 households with 600 people are affected.
Over the years, this area has been degraded but people cannot build houses, the environment is polluted, the infrastructure is incomplete, flooding is frequent, and there is a risk of disease outbreaks. According to the investor's report, the problem occurs due to the outdated land acquisition and compensation policy. Initially, this was implemented according to the 2003 Land Law and the 2004 Investment Law, but over the years it has changed.
According to Mr. Thang, the compensation price offered by the investor is also not suitable, quite low so the people do not agree. "In the immediate future, the locality will clean up this area to ensure environmental sanitation, build roads and infrastructure to ensure people's travel conditions," Mr. Thang said.
To resolve the issue, the district has proposed that the Department of Natural Resources and Environment stop allocating land to Binh Phu Investment Joint Stock Company. The locality has also proposed calling on other investors or using the budget to implement the project, soon stabilizing people's lives.
Dinh Van
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