On the afternoon of June 25, information from the People's Committee of Ayun Pa town (Gia Lai province) said that the unit had directed the preparation of an official report and clarified the case of cutting down a series of trees in the premises of the People's Committee of Cheo Reo ward.
According to people's feedback, when agencies and units are urgently and actively preparing for the establishment of new commune and ward-level administrative units, many decades-old cajuput trees have been cut down.
Mr. N.A (38 years old), a resident of Cheo Reo ward, shared: " Ayun Pa land is known as a firebreaker, the weather is very harsh. Therefore, cutting down shade-bearing trees planted a long time ago is a very painful and regrettable thing."
Local people were surprised to see 7 large acacia trees with a diameter of up to 1 meter cut down. Each large, round piece of wood with fresh cuts is transported by truck to another place for sale.
For many years, Cheo Reo people have been familiar with the image of the barley trees giving shade every summer. The trees help reduce the heat of the land and fire pan, creating comfortable conditions for people to go to the ward People's Committee headquarters for administrative procedures.
A representative of the Urban Management Department ( Ayun Pa Town People's Committee) said that the acacia trees were too large with wide trunks. During the rainy and stormy season, the People's Committee of Cheo Reo Ward often has to report to the Town Public Service Center to handle and trim to avoid falling and endangering people and officers coming to work.
However, because the trees are too tall, the cost of pruning is quite high, the labor cost is up to more than 3 million VND/day. These trees belong to the Cheo Reo Ward People's Committee, so they are under the management of the ward. The Urban Management Department is only in charge of planting and caring for trees in projects outside the road, parks, sidewalks, etc.
Mr. Duong Ngoc Dung - Chairman of Cheo Reo Ward People's Committee said that the cutting down of trees was carried out with the consensus of the Party Committee and Ward People's Committee, agreeing to sell the trees to get funding for activities.
About 7 large trees were cut down, selling for about 8 million VND. The buyer of this wood resides in Ia Hiao commune, Phu Thien district, Gia Lai province. The case is currently being further clarified by the People's Committee of Ayun Pa town.
Regarding trees, in 2023, Lao Dong Newspaper reported that many people in Ayun Pa town petitioned the government about a project to plant trees under power lines.
In the town, along main roads such as Tran Hung Dao, Nguyen Hue... there are oil trees growing from 45m high. Most of the trees are planted right under the power line, even close to the foot of the power pole and houses along the road. This has led to a series of urban trees dying and standing exposed, causing people to be upset because the project lacks efficiency.
