Mayor's jobs for award winners draw outcry

BEIJING A county in Northern China that offered jobs at local public institutions as part of a prize in a mayor's awards program has drawn flak over a practice that breaks government rules.

Two local government departments and four individuals won the prize in March last year, and each received 10,000 yuan ($1,600) in rewards and promises of jobs at local public institutions for their children, a document issued by the local government in Yanshan county of Hebei province said.

The prizes were meant to reward their contributions to the county's economic and social development in the past year, it said.