Unity to overcome storms and floods

The heavy rain and floods left behind heartbreaking figures: 98 people died, 10 people are still missing, hundreds of thousands of houses were submerged in water, many constructions and traffic routes were severely damaged, estimated damage was more than 14.3 trillion VND, putting the Central Highlands region in front of countless difficulties.

A delegation of medical staff and doctors from Dong Nai province examined and provided free medicine to people in Son Thanh commune, Dak Lak province. Photo: Cong Nghia

However, in the midst of hardship, humanity shines brightly. Sharing hands and hearts of mutual love have become a support, igniting the belief for people to overcome challenges together.

Reporters of Dong Nai Newspaper and Radio and Television had an interview with comrade HA ANH DUNG, Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Permanent Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Dong Nai province on this issue.

Comrade Ha Anh Dung, Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Permanent Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Dong Nai province. Photo: Le Quyen

* Dear comrade, from the perspective of the Vietnam Fatherland Front, what are the biggest difficulties that people in the Central Highlands are facing after this natural disaster, especially related to livelihoods and life reconstruction?

- First of all, I sincerely send my deepest condolences to the families of the victims and sympathize with the extremely difficult situation that our people in the areas of natural disasters and floods are suffering from, both material and spiritual losses. Surely the impact of this natural disaster will require a lot of time and resources to help the Central Highlands provinces overcome the consequences and rebuild the lives of the people.

It can be seen that the impacts on people's lives are huge:

Firstly, people's livelihoods were severely affected. Prolonged rain and floods washed away property, livestock, poultry, and aquatic products; crops and fields were flooded, posing a risk of landslides and rocks burying fields and gardens; many small production facilities were paralyzed; many households lost almost everything, no longer having tools, means of livelihood, or source of income to start over.

Second, rebuilding life faces countless challenges. Hundreds of thousands of houses are deeply flooded and severely damaged; many essential works and infrastructure such as roads, schools, electricity and water systems in some places have not yet been restored; environmental sanitation, epidemics, living conditions, health care, especially for the elderly and children, are still very lacking; teaching and learning are greatly affected...

Third, after the shock of natural disasters, people's psychology was also greatly affected. In many places, people were worried because their crops were lost, they were in debt, and they could not predict their livelihood in the coming time.

* In his letter of condolences to compatriots affected by recent natural disasters, General Secretary To Lam affirmed: “In times of hardship, we see more clearly the strength of solidarity and Vietnamese humanity”. In your opinion, how was this spirit demonstrated during the recent floods?

- As we can see, in difficult times, the Vietnamese people clearly demonstrate the strength of humanity, the tradition of great solidarity, the spirit of mutual love and support, "The whole leaf covers the torn leaf" of the whole nation; the nature of humanity and affection shines brighter than ever and creates a support for everyone to overcome difficulties.

Before and immediately after the natural disaster occurred, the entire political system from the central to local levels quickly and proactively took action with timely direction, campaigns, and appeals; the police, military, border guards, militia, and even people in neighboring areas rushed into the rescue with "humanity in danger"... regardless of danger, diving day and night in the rain and floods to rescue, evacuate, and support people to safety.

Along with that, thousands of organizations, businesses and individuals across the country have promptly turned to the Central Highlands by contributing funds, transporting goods and necessities, supporting home repairs and taking care of families that suffered heavy losses. It is this strength that has helped people in flood-affected areas overcome extremely difficult times and created the belief that we will stand up together, restore and develop after natural disasters.

* It can be seen that the motto “No one is left behind” has been and is being implemented very clearly in this natural disaster. From the practice of monitoring and visiting the people in the flooded areas, how do you feel about that?

- When visiting the flood-hit areas, the working team of Dong Nai province clearly felt the motto "No one is left behind", this is no longer an empty slogan but is carried out through very specific actions.

From the rescue team that spent hours trying to bring each person to safety; to the working groups that brought food, medicine, clothes, and necessities; to the community's support from all over the world; to the efforts of the people in the disaster-stricken areas themselves; all aimed at ensuring that everyone was supported, no one was hungry or unclothed, and no one was isolated in the flood.

* Dear comrade, in Dong Nai province, how has the work of mobilizing support for the Central Highlands region been and is being implemented?

As soon as the disaster occurred, the Provincial Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee issued an appeal and received a very strong response from agencies, units, businesses and people in the province. The Standing Committee of the Provincial Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee received contributions from all walks of life and the business community of more than 20 billion VND; the Provincial Red Cross Society received more than 100 tons of goods. But I was most moved by the "love of the people" of Dong Nai, stemming from the command of the heart, shining even brighter "love of the nation, love of compatriots". In just a short time (from November 20 to November 26, 2020), from border communes to central localities, from retired elderly people to primary school students... all took action by contributing labor and money... There were 94 volunteer groups, with more than 1,100 volunteers; 218 truck trips transported nearly 1,200 tons of goods, necessities, essential items, clean water, common medicines... worth nearly 30 billion VND to support damaged localities.

* Recently, there has been a stream of information distorting social security policies, even deliberately attacking the efforts of our Party and State in supporting people in flood-affected areas. According to you, what should we do in the face of such information?

- Recently, besides positive information, reflecting the true situation of storms and floods; but there has also been some distorted information, even deliberately attacking the efforts of the Party and State in supporting people in flood-affected areas, dividing the great national unity bloc. In particular, taking advantage of digital technology, AI applications, many staged images to confuse people.

All contributions - from cash to goods - are received publicly, fully recorded, continuously updated, published in detail daily and widely informed on mass media, social networking platforms such as Zalo, Fanpage... for organizations and individuals to follow. The allocation of resources is carried out in accordance with regulations, based on actual damage reports of localities, the leadership of the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee, the Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee and agreed with other provinces before Dong Nai's working delegations directly bring them to hand.

In addition, the monitoring work involves the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee at all levels, member organizations and community representatives, ensuring that the support reaches the right people, in the right place, without omission or duplication. We are committed to ensuring that each part of the support reaches the right target and brings about the most practical results for people in flood-affected areas.

Comrade Ha Anh Dung, Member of the Provincial Party Standing Committee, Permanent Vice Chairman of the Vietnam Fatherland Front Committee of Dong Nai province

We need to be alert and clear-headed in the face of this information, read carefully, look closely at the images and read information from official information channels; because only when based on reality and official information can we properly evaluate the efforts of agencies, forces and communities in relief work, thereby strengthening confidence and the spirit of national solidarity is the important weapon, the most important strength to overcome all challenges, creating confidence to help our compatriots overcome difficulties.

Disseminating correct and transparent information also helps all resources to be mobilized effectively, to the right people, in the right locality, avoiding waste and duplication, contributing to enhancing consensus among the people.

Thank you very much, comrade!

Le Quyen (performed)

Source: https://baodongnai.com.vn/chinh-tri/202511/doan-ket-vuot-qua-bao-lu-20d3b82/