Officials shouldn't pass odd remarks

Wang Dinghua, deputy director-general of the elementary education department, said on Tuesday that the Ministry of Education had stopped institutions from imposing education charges arbitrarily, but facts show a different story, says an article in Yangtze Evening Post. Excerpts:

Arbitrary charges in schools and colleges have been an age-old problem. Experts estimate that from 1994 to 2004, arbitrary education charges amounted to at least 200 billion yuan ($29.29 billion), adding to the burden of the people, especially the poor and the low-income group.

Now Wang Dinghua, deputy director-general of the elementary education department says the Ministry of Education has allocated a 160-billion-yuan fund for compulsory education in the country, and that it would reduce arbitrary education charges.