Power and transparency

Local governments need more transparency, and a limit to the powers they wield, says an article in People's Daily. The following is an excerpt.

Two bits of news are attracting a lot of attention on the website of People's Daily. One is about the open administrative power system adopted in Nanjing, and the other is about where the limit should be drawn of a government's administrative power. The latter involves a dispute between the Hengyang municipal government and local river sand diggers.

According to reports, Nanjing has designated 3,731 areas where the administrative powers of 54 municipal government departments can exert influence on on the government's website for public review. Nanjing has also mapped out a chart of how administrative power operates in its daily work. Such transparency has lessened the opportunity for shady activities.