Get the list right

It is no surprise that the move by the Dongguan municipal government to give cash as subsidy to low-income residents has been lauded by many as a step in the right direction.

Low-income residents bore the brunt of price hikes in daily necessities. As one of the most prosperous cities in South China's Guangdong province, Dongguan is financially capable of easing the pain low-income residents feel from the hike by giving them subsidies.

But it is also quite natural for opinions to be divided on the way the subsidies can reach the residents in urgent need of help.

The Dongguan government estimated at the beginning that it needed to distribute some 120 billion yuan ($17.4 million) to 120,000 low-income residents, with each getting 1,000 yuan in cash. But now it has already allocated 162 million yuan to 162,000 residents. And the low-income residents from 15 townships or districts are still to get the subsidies.

It is both necessary and right for a government to take care of its low-income residents if it is financially capable of doing so. But the big gap between the Dongguan government's original estimation and the much larger number of residents who are listed as being eligible for the subsidy suggests that the method it employs to identify the most needy residents is not the best and therefore some of its money may reach those who do not need such help.

It is really hard for a government to identify whose income is low enough to warrant a living allowance. And it is even harder for Dongguan's government to identify how many residents deserve the cash subsidy of 1,000 yuan when its policy is meant for those whose income is only just a little higher than the minimum income line.

Some local governments used to have stipulations that would make those who keep pets or have air conditioners or have computers ineligible for government living allowances when they found no definitive way to figure out the exact income of those who apply for financial aid.

However difficult it is to identify the group of residents really in bad need of financial aid, any government needs to set its goal on using taxpayers' money in the most efficient way in aiding the needy.

When it comes to Dongguan's case, a subsidy in the form of cash may ease price hike pressure on low-income residents right now, but it is not a sustainable way to help the real needy. It needs a systematic scheme to provide aid to the poverty-stricken people when it is necessary.

(China Daily 07/23/2008 page8)