Locals debate cost of Nick Vujicic’s Vietnam visit Viet Toan   Nick Vujicic, the renowned limbless Australian, said goodbye to Vietnam on Sunday, leaving behind the profound effects of his motivational speeches, and a heated debate as well. A disagreement has arisen among locals over the huge sum a sponsor spent on Vujicic’s visit during his four-day stay. Hoa Sen Group, a local sheet metal producer, confirmed it had channeled VND36 billion (US$1.7 million) into the organization of Vujicic’s speeches and other related events to encourage and inspire young Vietnamese and those with disabilities in the Southeast Asian nation, where GDP per capita has just topped $1,600. And locals are divided in their opinions on this giant amount of money, with opponents apparently prevailing over their rivals.  What a waste! Dinh Ngoc Tuy, a reader, told Tuoi Tre that spending such a big amount on Vujicic was as “xenomaniac” as going to the only Starbucks outlet here, referring to a trend of young Vietnamese flocking to the U.S. coffee chain store in Ho Chi Minh City.  “I tip my hat to him [Nick Vujicic] but there are scores of people like him in Vietnam,” Tuy added. Thu Thuy, another reader, said that the group should have donated the money to charities instead. “It would have been used to do a lot of things for the disabled in the country,” Thuy said, adding that she does not admire Vujicic any longer after learning of the gigantic cost of his visit. “It was such a waste to splurge as much as VND36 billion on this occasion”, Nguyen Hung said in a comment on Tuoi Tre’s news website. “Vietnamese people with disabilities would be much more inspired if the spending had been allocated to them”, Hung argued. “Hoa Sen did it for their own benefit, as official figures show they have added VND180 billion ($8.6 million) to their assets thanks to a rise in the firm’s stock price resulting from Vujicic's visit over the last few days,” he remarked. It was ridiculous to pay VND36 billion to encourage handicapped people, while the sponsor gave a mere VND40 million ($1,905) in cash to a group of them at one of Vujicic’s presentations, Thanh Binh said in an email sent to Tuoi Tre. To be precise, Hoa Sen presented VND20 million ($952) to each of the 24 disabled people invited to a speech by the Australian in Ho Chi Minh City on Wednesday. Nguyen Thi Ut commented on tuoitre.vn that creating inspiration this way is unnecessary and inadvisable. “Why didn’t we dedicate the money to honoring and helping Vujicic’s Vietnamese peers instead?”, Ut wondered.     Vietnam is too poor to afford what Hoa Sen did, a reader nicknamed Tranht said, asserting “the fee for him is too big.” There is no need to spend VND36 billion, as Vietnam has many people who can do even better than what Vujicic has done so far, another reader wrote by email. It’s worth it! On the other side of the argument, one reader said that Hoa Sen should be thanked for bringing the strong-willed man here to share his inspiring lessons with locals and give them more strength. It was good to invite Vujicic to Vietnam, as he is already an international brand and did inspire many people, another advocate said.   The special man has created more courage and faith in those people who attended his presentations, so “it’s worth it,” reader Nguyen Phu Qui said. “Thank you, Nick Vujicic!” he exclaimed. “It was never a waste of money to bring in Vujicic, as young Vietnamese, many of whom are so selfish and indifferent to social issues at the moment, should listen to him and feel that they are lucky to have a normal body and thus should live more responsibly”, Xanh Sam said passionately in a comment. Nick Vujicic was born on December 4, 1982 in Melbourne, Australia with tetra-amelia syndrome, a rare disorder characterized by the absence of all four limbs. He struggled mentally, emotionally and physically, but eventually came to terms with his disability. He has visited 47 countries, including Vietnam, to deliver over 2,000 motivational speeches about hope and finding meaning in life with a disability. He was wildly welcomed in Vietnam, with crowds of fans waiting at local airports for him like a showbiz celebrity. His speeches in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City were attended by tens of thousands of people even though they were broadcast live on national TV channels.

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