But the issue is not just "untie the knot", but to answer why a project worth more than 32 billion VND is abandoned, while nearly 900 students are still crowded to study at the old facility.
An unacceptable paradox is that the new school has completed the main part, but cannot operate due to the lack of essential items such as multi-purpose buildings, subject classrooms, and playgrounds.
Meaning that right from the investment preparation stage, synchronization has not been ensured.
Doing it half-heartedly, not being able to use it, that is the manifestation of fragmented investment thinking, lacking long-term vision.
As Lao Dong Newspaper analyzed, the consequence is double waste, even more waste.
First, wasting budget money, tens of billions of VND "stand still" without generating value. Second, wasting opportunities, highland students lose better learning conditions, while old facilities are overloaded.
And thirdly, wasting time, the slower it is put into use, the more degraded the project becomes, and the repair costs continue to increase.
An unoperated project will quickly be damaged. At that time, to complete phase 2, the budget will not only have to spend nearly 20 billion VND more, but may also have to spend money to repair what was done in phase 1.
The more delayed, the more expensive the price.
From a management perspective, this cannot be considered an "objective obstacle". If there is a lack of capital for phase 2, why was phase 1 still decided to start construction?
If it has been implemented, why not prepare resources at the same time to complete synchronously. These questions need to be answered clearly, and cannot be avoided.
The fact that the Lao Cai Provincial People's Committee agreed in principle to continue investing in phase 2 is the right step, but it is right in a passive position.
What people, parents and teachers need is not only policies, but specific commitments, when to start construction, when to complete, when students will be able to study in the new school.
More importantly, the progress must be linked to personal responsibility. If the project is delayed, who is responsible? If it continues to be delayed, how will it be handled?
The law on public investment has clearly stipulated the responsibilities of investors, advisory agencies, and heads. But if it is not strictly implemented, the regulations are only on paper.
An educational project is not just concrete, reinforced steel, it is the future of hundreds of students, the people's belief in the State's investment policy for education.
It is impossible to let the situation of "new school abandoned, old school overloaded" become normal. It is time to stop the mindset of doing it first, calculating later.
Phong Hai 2 Secondary School must have a specific finish date. And if they do not finish on time, there must be someone responsible.
