The HCMC Department of Construction, on December 21, sent the municipal government a plan to take disciplinary actions against leaders, officials and organizations within its jurisdiction due to irregularities in HCMC's Thu Thiem New Urban Area project, Nguoi Lao Dong newspaper reported.

A view of the Thu Thiem New Urban Area development project in HCMC’s District 2 

Based on results of a Government Inspectorate inspection, the report on disciplinary actions will be prepared to assess and clarify responsibilities of individuals and agencies for approving the planning, adjustments to it, recalling the land, providing compensation for affected residents and developing resettlement zones for them, as well as storing insufficient data, in line with regulations in each period; and to take proper sanctions against violators.

The punishment will be imposed on the approval of the 1/2000 zoning plan for the new urban area, in line with Decision 13585 issued in 1998 for irregularities in land area and boundary adjustments.

In particular, the zoning plan led to a reduction of 26.3 hectares, including three hectares of water surface, compared with the then-Prime Minister (PM)’s Decision 367 to develop Thu Thiem Peninsula into a new urban area. The 23.3 hectares was allocated to five companies to develop housing, an amusement park and commercial projects in Binh An Ward of District 2. The handover was made before the PM approved the master plan.

Further, some 4.3 hectares of ward-based land was added to the planning boundary of the plan. The action, however, did not align with the approved master plan of the then-PM.

Relevant agencies and individuals will be required to write letters of apology, reporting their mistakes and irregularities during the execution of the project. Besides this, the municipal Department of Construction will take disciplinary actions on leaders involved in the project.

The HCMC Department of Construction will send the report to the municipal government by January 1, 2019.

SGT