On December 17, Lam Dong Provincial Inspectorate announced that it had publicly announced the inspection conclusion on land allocation and land lease for the implementation of the Hon Rom Hill High-end Villa and Resort Tourism Project, pointing out procedures that were not in accordance with regulations when allocating land to the investor.
The Hon Rom Hill High-end Villa and Resort Project is invested by Thien Hai Joint Stock Company, with a scale of 85.7 hectares in Mui Ne Ward (Lam Dong Province).
According to the inspection conclusion, in the period of 2012 - 2013, the People's Committee of Binh Thuan province (old) organized an auction of land use rights in Hon Rom area (3 times) but failed. At this time, the auction was conducted according to the 2003 Land Law.
In the decision in July 2012, the People's Committee of Binh Thuan province approved the auction plan of 85.7 hectares of land with the purpose of use as "land for production and business investment in tourist areas", without urban land.
In 2015, after the People's Committee of Binh Thuan province (old) asked for opinions and was agreed to hand over the above 85.7ha of land without auction, with the purpose of use still being "land for production, business and investment in tourist areas".
However, in 2017, the People's Committee of Binh Thuan province allocated 20 hectares of land for the project with the purpose of using "urban residential land" and leased nearly 63.84 hectares of commercial and service land to Thien Hai Joint Stock Company.
According to the inspection conclusion, the allocation and lease of the above land area is not in accordance with the approved instructions, leading to inconsistency with legal regulations.
The responsibility for the violations is determined to belong to the leaders of the People's Committee of Binh Thuan province (old) who signed the decisions on land allocation and land lease (Decision No. 1801, Decision No. 2205); along with the responsibility of advising the Provincial People's Committee Office and related departments and branches.
By 2022, the People's Committee of Binh Thuan province (old) will continue to issue a Decision to adjust the investment policy, thereby adjusting the content of "building villas for sale and lease with an area of 20 hectares of long-term residential land" to the form of "investing in the construction and business of high-end resorts".
The inspection conclusion emphasized that the restructuring of 20 hectares of urban land that changed the original land use rights auction plan but the People's Committee of Binh Thuan province (old) did not continue to announce the auction but allocated land to Thien Hai Joint Stock Company in 2017 was not in accordance with regulations, risking loss of state budget. Although the province has hired a consulting unit for land appraisal and approved a specific Land Valuation Council.
From the above shortcomings, Lam Dong Provincial Inspectorate recommends that the Chairman of the Provincial People's Committee direct the review and handling of the responsibilities of relevant groups and individuals.
At the same time, it is recommended that the Provincial People's Committee assign the Department of Finance to advise and report to the Steering Committee for Project 751 to fully determine land prices and financial obligations of investors, avoiding loss of state assets and waste of land resources.
In case the project cannot be resolved, the Provincial Inspectorate will advise and propose to the Provincial People's Committee for consideration and handling according to the provisions of law.
