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Taking public for a ride
(China Daily)
Updated: 2009-11-28 07:25 In what can be termed an affront to people's intelligence, a residential housing project in Nanjing with a shaky foundation that is in high danger of collapsing, has received an "excellent residential building" award. The prize is the most authoritative one of its kind given out by the Jiangsu local administration. In fact, the appraisal has generally been interpreted as a review of the quality of residential buildings in the province, and is officially organized by an institution attached to the local government. Yet, ironically, residents have already been evacuated from the building and work is under way to consolidate its foundation. The building has been nicknamed lou wai wai, meaning a structure that is slanted, by residents. It is unclear how the building quality was assessed and on what basis the panel members decided it was "excellent". It seems likely that none of the panel members ever inspected the building before casting their votes. How can these panel members know then whether the buildings are of sound quality or not? When assessing the quality of any product, judges must test and verify the samples themselves. That is the basis for a fair assessment of the product.
Assessments regarding housing quality should not be made an exception to this rule. The panel members should have checked the quality of the building before adjudging it as the best. Any assessment based only on reports provided by real estate developers is not only unconvincing, but also borders on cheating, and taking the public for a ride. It has been reported that some officials from the Ministry of Housing and Rural-urban Development and National Association of Real Estate Development participated in this assessment. It has also been reported that real estate developers had to pay to get their buildings assessed and graded for the awards. This is what has been revealed so far about the stories behind the awards. And, it is enough to conclude that these awards have no credibility at all. If awards granted by government departments are not credible, what evaluation criteria can ordinary residents trust when it comes to buying a product? This is not the first scandal of its kind. A dental disease prevention organization attached to the Ministry of Health that once provided certification for toothpaste makers for profits turned out to be an unlicensed institution two years ago. Abuse of power is rampant behind various certifications or quality assessment activities organized by institutions attached to both local and central governments. Most are only profit-driven. They lower the credibility of the government and cause the public to lose confidence in and respect for the government. It is high time such malpractices were eliminated and the credibility of the government regained. (China Daily 11/28/2009 page4) |
