Canh Liên commune in Gia Lai province, known as the “gateway to heaven,” has seen remarkable change thanks to joint efforts by provincial armed forces and local authorities to eliminate temporary and dilapidated housing.
Over a three-month campaign, soldiers worked side by side with villagers in Ka Nau, Ka Bong, Ha Giao, Kon Lot and Chom. They contributed more than 2,030 working days and transported 1,050 tonnes of construction materials, significantly cutting project costs. As a result, 101 households received newly built or renovated homes.
For residents, the new houses brought both relief and hope. “I thought my family would live in a leaky house forever,” said Dinh Van Du, 49, from Ka Nau. “Thanks to the State and the soldiers, we now have our dream home.”
Similarly, Dinh Thi Bao, 58, from the same village, expressed joy: “Our children are struggling too, so they couldn’t help us. But with State funding and soldiers’ support, we now have a new house and hope for a better future.”
Local Party Secretary Doan Vu Cuong praised the initiative, saying it strengthened ethnic minorities’ trust in the Party, State and military.
Beyond Canh Liên, the provincial armed forces also took part in rebuilding efforts across Gia Lai, contributing 14,205 working days to repair or replace 475 homes.
The Border Guard alone built 10 houses worth more than 1 billion VND (about USD 40,000), with over 700 million VND (USD 28,000) raised from soldiers and donors.
Colonel Nguyen Xuan Son, Deputy Political Commissar of the provincial armed forces, underlined the commitment: “During the war, people sheltered and supported the army. In peacetime, we continue to serve the people wholeheartedly.”
The spirit of service extended beyond the military. In Ia Pa commune, Lieutenant Colonel Le Dinh Hai, deputy head of the local police, personally financed the construction of a house for Kpa H’Que, a 75-year-old disabled widow.
Her family’s old home, built under a government program in 2005, had fallen into disrepair. After her son passed away, she and her grandchildren had been living under a stilt house.
“Seeing their hardship, I couldn’t turn away,” said Lt. Col. Hai. Using his family’s savings, he built a 75-square-metre home with two bedrooms, a kitchen and a bathroom.
The project cost more than 80 million VND (USD 3,200). His wife, Ung Thi Chau Trang, supported the decision: “It was hard to give up our savings, but seeing their new home made it worthwhile.”
Hai also assisted other poor families. He contributed 20 million VND (USD 800) to help Kpa Sun in Marin 2 village rebuild his wooden house, supplementing state and community support.
At a recent conference on housing support across the Central Highlands, Major General Le Quang Nhan, Gia Lai’s police chief, said the province had the third-highest number of temporary homes nationwide.
The provincial police raised 5.4 billion VND (USD 216,000) by contributing two days of salary each, and mobilised an additional 2.78 billion VND (USD 111,000) in donations, along with thousands of tonnes of construction materials and more than 5,000 working days.
“These houses are not just shelters but symbols of love and solidarity,” Maj. Gen. Nhan said. “They reinforce public trust and embody the spirit of the People’s Police: ‘For the people, we serve.’”
Responding to the nationwide emulation movement “Joining hands to eliminate temporary and dilapidated houses,” the Ministry of Public Security mobilized 362 billion VND (USD 14.5 million) in contributions from its entire force, along with 373 billion VND (USD 15 million) from social resources, to support the replacement of more than 10,000 temporary and dilapidated homes in various localities.
Of this, Gia Lai province received 231 billion VND (USD 9.2 million) to build and repair houses for thousands of poor households and families of policy beneficiaries.
