The investor of 11,000 square meters of prime land for vegetable farming has quietly withdrawn from the 8 trillion VND project.

The shadow of Hanoi Thousand Years Joint Stock Company at Xuyen Tam Canal.

In early October, the project to dredge, improve the environment, and build infrastructure for the Xuyen Tam canal (which flows through Binh Thanh and Go Vap districts, nearly 9 km long) was officially approved by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, with a total investment of over 9,600 billion VND.

Surprisingly, the project was assigned to the Ho Chi Minh City Urban Infrastructure Investment and Construction Project Management Board as the investor, to be implemented in the period 2023-2028; and not Hanoi Ngan Nam Joint Stock Company - the unit that has been associated with this project for decades.

This is a project that has dragged on for 21 long years in Ho Chi Minh City. Beginning in 2002, the Xuyen Tam canal renovation project was first approved by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee with a budget of 123 billion VND, but it was subsequently suspended due to several obstacles.

Later, Hanoi Millennium Joint Stock Company appeared and made proposals that dramatically increased the project's investment by many tens of times.

Xuyen Tam Canal is considered the most polluted canal in Ho Chi Minh City. Photo: Minh Quan

Specifically, in 2011, Hanoi Ngan Nam Joint Stock Company proposed a project under the BT (Build-Transfer) model, with a total capital of approximately 7,000 billion VND. In this proposal, the renovation of Xuyen Tam canal was divided into three phases, including: clearing encroaching houses along the canal, dredging the entire route, constructing embankments along the route, building roads on both sides of the canal, and relocating residents…

Four years later, in 2015, Hanoi Ngan Nam Joint Stock Company continued to propose investing in the Xuyen Tam Canal renovation project, with a total investment of over 5,100 billion VND, of which the land clearance cost was nearly 1,100 billion VND.

Regarding the land compensation and resettlement plan, Hanoi Ngan Nam Joint Stock Company will independently organize the construction of on-site resettlement housing. In return, the City will compensate the investor with land along both sides of the project route to arrange resettlement and implement other projects. The project is expected to be implemented from 2015 and completed in 2022.

However, on September 21, 2016, reporting to the Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, Le Van Khoa, Mr. Nguyen Van Tam - Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Transport - stated that the Department had to send a document urging the investor, Hanoi Ngan Nam Joint Stock Company, to submit the feasibility study report for the Xuyen Tam canal renovation project because this project needed to be submitted to the Ministry of Construction for appraisal.

However, as of that time, authorities said there had been no indication from the investor regarding the start date or completion time of the project.

Hanoi Millennium Company quietly departed.

A document released by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee shows that, in a subsequent proposal, Hanoi Ngan Nam Joint Stock Company continued to propose a plan to implement the Xuyen Tam Canal renovation project with an adjusted investment capital requirement of nearly 8,000 billion VND. The project is expected to commence in early 2019 and be completed no later than the fourth quarter of 2024.

According to the work schedule for the week of June 15-21, 2020, of the Standing Committee of the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, as announced by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee, there is still a scheduled meeting with Hanoi Ngan Nam Joint Stock Company regarding the Xuyen Tam canal project.

But after that time, the Hanoi Thousand Years Joint Stock Company was nowhere to be seen in the information provided by the Ho Chi Minh City People's Committee regarding the Xuyen Tam canal project. After 21 years, the people living along the Xuyen Tam canal still only see the project... on paper.

On December 1st, in an interview with a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, Mr. Nguyen Hoang Anh Dung, Deputy Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Urban Infrastructure Investment and Construction Project Management Board, stated that the project was handed over to the Management Board around 2020-2021. Mr. Dung also expressed uncertainty about the unit that had previously studied the project, as it had been under the management of the Department of Transportation for many years prior.

The Lao Dong newspaper previously published an article reflecting on the fact that after decades of implementation, the Thang Long 1,000th Anniversary Oncology and Cosmetic Surgery Hospital Project in Long Bien district (Hanoi) remains only on paper.

Notably, the project's investor is also Hanoi Ngan Nam Joint Stock Company, which officially received its investment certificate from the Hanoi People's Committee on February 19, 2014.

However, nearly 10 years after receiving the investment certificate, the more than 11,000 m2 plot of land where the project was planned has now become a place for local people to grow vegetables and park their cars. Observations by Lao Dong newspaper on November 21-22 showed that the entire area intended for the hospital construction is still completely enclosed by corrugated iron fences.

The plot of land for the Thang Long 1,000th Anniversary Oncology and Cosmetic Surgery Hospital Project. Photo: Vinh Hoang. — The plot of land designated for the Thang Long 1,000th Anniversary Oncology and Cosmetic Surgery Hospital Project is still an empty field. Photo: Vinh Hoang.

Due to over 11,000 square meters of prime land for the hospital project being left abandoned for many years, voters in Long Bien district have repeatedly raised concerns and requested a reassessment of the suitability of building a hospital at this location. They have also proposed that the authorities study the option of changing the land use purpose to build an additional high school for the district.

As for the project at Xuyen Tam canal, which is considered the most polluted canal in Ho Chi Minh City, residents will likely have to continue waiting.

"I've heard about the demolition of this area since I was very young, but it's dragged on until now. My child is already in elementary school, but there's still no sign of anything. I can't trust just what I hear because it's happened too many times already," said Ms. Kim Hien, a resident living along the Xuyen Tam canal, to a reporter from Lao Dong newspaper.

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