What makes Thu Duc City not have a breakthrough after nearly 4 years of establishment?
Báo Dân trí•18/11/2024
(Dan Tri) - Despite having "heavenly time and favorable terrain", Thu Duc City has yet to make a breakthrough, especially in infrastructure since its establishment. Experts say it is time to consider a broader mechanism for this model.
From the second half of 2020 to early 2021, land prices in Truong Tho area (formerly Thu Duc district) increased sharply. Information about the establishment of Thu Duc city and the fact that Truong Tho will become one of the 8 dynamic areas of the new city caused a land price fever to flare up far from the center of Ho Chi Minh City. Mr. Kim Hung (28 years old, living in Truong Tho ward) recalled that a 60m2 house on Nguyen Van Ba street was advertised for sale for about 2 billion VND in early 2020 and quickly changed owners. At the time the information about the establishment of Thu Duc city was announced, the new owner of the house immediately sold it for 2.6 billion VND after a short time of posting it for sale. "But up to now, the land price fever is the only thing I clearly feel about Thu Duc becoming a city. Currently, land prices have cooled down, I have not seen any clear differences in roads or other living conditions in the place where my family has lived for many generations," Mr. Hung shared. Truong Tho is identified as the central urban area of Thu Duc City in the near future with the existing port cluster (Photo: Hai Long). Apart from the Truong Tho area, the remaining 7 places that were shaped as the new center of Thu Duc City after its establishment have not had a clear shift after nearly 4 years. At the Thu Thiem financial - technology center, the roads are still waiting to be connected and completed; the Rach Chiec sports and health center is still an empty land with construction projects that have had to temporarily stop after decades of planning. At a working session with Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Nguyen Van Nen at the end of October, the leaders of Thu Duc City also frankly admitted that after nearly 4 years, the locality has not invested in many outstanding projects and infrastructure works. Most of the construction products in the past time are the results of construction started and implemented in the previous term.
People can not feel clearly
"I have many relatives in Thu Duc City, they shared that when they moved to the city, their lives and activities did not change significantly. At first, they were tired of changing documents and doing administrative procedures. There was still flooding, traffic jams, there was no difference," Dr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen, Vietnam Urban Planning and Development Association, opened the discussion. He also reviewed, through the provided data, the growth in labor productivity and economic indicators of Thu Duc City has increased since its establishment. However, he also said that such growth could still come when the previous 3 districts have not been merged. Dr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen, Vietnam Urban Planning and Development Association, talks with Dan Tri reporter (Photo: Q.Huy). In 2020, when Ho Chi Minh City finally completed the procedures to establish Thu Duc City, a former leader of the city at that time shared that it was the "golden" time to form a city within the heart of the first centrally-run city in the country. If the opportunity is missed, the project to establish Thu Duc City will have to wait at least the next 5 years. Dr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen said that now is the time to look back at whether the establishment of Thu Duc City has been thoroughly prepared in terms of institutions and detailed development scenarios. In fact, up to now, Thu Duc City is only developing like an inter-district model. "We need to ask ourselves, is the time to establish Thu Duc City the time that cannot be delayed? Why not calculate everything to be done, everything to be ripe before merging? Like a banquet, the tables and chairs need to be arranged neatly before inviting guests to attend," the expert expressed his opinion. Dr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen acknowledged that this lack of preparation led to congestion, backlog of work, and queuing at the time Thu Duc City first came into operation. This was also the issue pointed out by Secretary of the Ho Chi Minh City Party Committee Nguyen Van Nen at a recent meeting with the Thu Duc City Party Committee, the reason why the city directly under Ho Chi Minh City spent a lot of time stabilizing and arranging the apparatus. The next consequence was that the implementation of large projects and works was delayed. Thu Duc market area still experiences flooding during heavy rain (Photo: Hai Long). Dr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen assessed that the most remarkable result of Thu Duc City after nearly 4 years of establishment is the public administration sector. The processing of administrative records and procedures can be done online with nearly 90%, nearly 100% of records being resolved on time. "It should also be added that this good point actually comes from the available information technology infrastructure, which does not require much effort, too much specialized training or too high requirements on human resources capacity. The contrast is that the implementation of large projects and works, which require many stages, many steps, and many procedures, is delayed," Dr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen pointed out the problem. With an overview, the expert of the Vietnam Urban Planning and Development Association said that after nearly 4 years, the breakthrough and effectiveness of the city-within-a-city model is not clear. People cannot feel the results of the change when the locality becomes a city.
Not yet in the shape of a creative city
"Heavenly time, favorable location" is what Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Minh Hoa, Vice Chairman of the Ho Chi Minh City Development Planning Association, assessed when talking about the current conditions of Thu Duc City. Unfortunately, the inherent strengths of the three districts have not been utilized to create breakthroughs over the past four years. "Thu Duc City is the starting point of a chain of urban areas extending to the strongly developing areas of Binh Duong, Di An, Thu Dau Mot, Long Thanh. Across it is a chain of urban areas from Ba Ria - Vung Tau province to the end point of Ho Tram. These are necessary conditions for Thu Duc City to be able to accelerate, but the sufficient conditions must be accompanied by freedom of creativity and freedom of breakthroughs," Mr. Nguyen Minh Hoa shared. Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Minh Hoa, Vice President of Ho Chi Minh City Development Planning Association (Photo: Nam Anh). Among the initially oriented development pillars, the National University, the University of Agriculture and Forestry, and the Thu Duc Technical Pedagogical University are shaped as training and research centers. This place will be closely linked and connected with the city's High-Tech Park. "I have not seen cooperation and connection in Thu Duc City like in creative urban areas in the world. Typically, like Silicon Valley (USA), a center will be responsible for scientific research, training and experimental production. When successful, scientific achievements will be transferred to the high-tech park to enter the production stage," analyzed Dr. Nguyen Minh Hoa. Regarding the current infrastructure of Thu Duc City, the expert commented that there are still many unfinished traffic works, the problem of traffic jams and congestion has not changed. Typically, the belt routes 2, belt routes 3, and the project to renovate Luong Dinh Cua street have not been completed. A section of Ring Road 2 passing through Thu Duc City is waiting for the groundbreaking date (Photo: Trinh Nguyen). In addition, people living in the city in the heart of Ho Chi Minh City still have to endure serious flooding. The quality of life, environmental landscape, and urban appearance have not changed significantly compared to before the merger of the 3 districts. "Nearly 4 years is not a short period of time, but the changes in Thu Duc City since its establishment are not much, not clear enough for people to feel. During that time, there was development, but not a breakthrough, and the results have not been clearly shown in the establishment of the city or the growth of a normal society," Associate Professor Dr. Nguyen Minh Hoa wondered. According to the expert, the "slow steps" of Thu Duc City do not entirely come from within this locality. He also gave his perspective, when all the conditions for a breakthrough with internal strength and external advantages have been met, but the model has not yet clearly demonstrated its effectiveness, should the Central Government and Ho Chi Minh City consider once again loosening the shirt for Thu Duc City?
Need creative freedom
Dr. Nguyen Minh Hoa reviewed that after merging 3 districts, Thu Duc City has about 1.2 million official residents and nearly 500,000 people working and living in the area. With the apparatus, authority, and mechanism not changing dramatically, people have fewer places to carry out administrative procedures and government agencies are also overloaded with work, limiting creativity. With the mechanism and authority not different from the current district-level administrative units, the expert said that Thu Duc City will find it difficult to achieve the great expectations set forth. Although Resolution 98 has decentralized and delegated some areas to Thu Duc City, these contents are not strong enough in reality to create big changes. Thu Duc City has favorable conditions for development as it is the starting point of a chain of dynamic urban areas in the region (Photo: Hai Long). "Maybe it's time for us to think about giving Thu Duc the mechanisms and authority of a centrally-run city. When given the freedom to create and develop, Thu Duc will develop strongly with its existing advantages," Mr. Nguyen Minh Hoa suggested. In the case of being steadfast in developing the model of a city within a centrally-run city, Dr. Nguyen Minh Hoa said that the first solution must be that Thu Duc must be given strong authority and autonomy in all areas of the area. "Currently, Thu Duc is decentralized, but only in vertical sectors. The solution I propose is to give authority on administrative boundaries, Thu Duc can decide everything without consulting any agency. Of course, along with this authority, the leaders at all levels in Thu Duc City must be truly strong in capacity and dare to think innovatively," the expert said. After the problem of mechanisms and models, Thu Duc can calculate the next solutions on planning and infrastructure. In particular, the first issue that needs to be overcome is to prevent flooding so that people can live stably, and to complete unfinished traffic projects and works. With not much vacant land left, experts advise that the locality needs to develop projects and works, develop the economy in depth, avoiding extensive development. Previously shaped development centers need to be connected and have a conductor to lead, avoiding the current fragmentation. "Thu Duc needs to invest a lot in high-tech, high-tech industries and professions, intensive farming on a small piece of land, avoiding processing fields for foreign corporations. Regarding traffic, developing elevated roads and underground traffic is something that needs special attention," Mr. Nguyen Minh Hoa emphasized. With limited land, Thu Duc City needs to focus on developing elevated roads and underground traffic (Photo: Hai Long). According to Dr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen, Thu Duc City is facing many difficulties and a series of problems that need to be solved. Only Ho Chi Minh City and Thu Duc City can understand these things best and provide solutions. "First, if Thu Duc is "running and queuing at the same time", it must be determined whether the queuing has been completed. If it has been completed, it needs to speed up, if it has not been completed, it must have a truly scientific way to clear the bottlenecks and create a flow for development," the expert commented. From the perspective of a citizen, Mr. Nguyen Huu Nguyen said that Ho Chi Minh City and Thu Duc City need to sit down, put on the scale large and small projects and determine which is the priority list for implementation, which is the most urgent, the most awaited by the people to avoid spreading investment. This is the responsibility of the authorities at all levels and they are the ones who understand best and have the most basis to make decisions.
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