Officials 'networking' at bars

About one third of 105 county- and district-level officials from four provinces say visiting entertainment venues such as health spas and karaoke bars is part of their "networking duty", a poll shows.

People's Daily, one of the country's major newspapers, conducted the poll on 105 officials in Jiangsu, Henan, Sichuan and Shandong provinces, the paper stated yesterday.

Twenty percent of those polled felt visiting entertainment venues was essential for "physical and mental relaxation", while 49 percent thought it was necessary for "socializing", the survey said.