Public interest must get priority
Policymakers should emphasize more on public interest instead of only protecting officials' interest in matters such as transport allowance, says an article on People's Daily Online. Excerpt:
A recent online survey on the change in officials' transport system showed more than 90 percent of the respondents believed that instead of cutting government costs, giving high allowances could lead to corruption.
In Hangzhou, for instance, government officials can get an allowance of anything between 300 yuan and 2,600 yuan a month, depending on their ranks and posts.
The change in the system is intended to cut the number of government cars, too. But then there's no rule to prevent officials from taking a transport allowance and using official cars as well. Thus the new system could end up becoming a source of extra benefit for some government officials.
It is shocking to see the head of Hongwei district in Liaoyang, Liaoning province, get 76,000 yuan a year as transport allowance. Officials using the reform to fulfill their personal wishes have invited public disapproval.
The move to change transport arrangements in government departments, launched in the early 1990s, is aimed at cutting government costs and preventing corruption. Many local governments have attempted to change their arrangements but have seldom succeeded.
The reason why such a reform is difficult to achieve is quite simple: It involves the personal interests of officials, who are also the policymakers. It is just like a referee playing for one of the sides in a game.
A reform can be implemented easily only if policymakers keep in mind the principle of governing for the people.
(China Daily 07/28/2009 page9)
