County officials spend little time with locals

BEIJING - County-level officials spend more time on indoor paperwork than field investigations, as well as more time with peers and superiors than with subordinates and the common people, according to a survey by the country's top social think tank.

The nationwide survey conducted by the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences shows these officials spend only 5 percent of their time visiting locals and listening to petitioners.

About 70 to 80 percent of China's population lives in county-level communities, which puts county heads and administrators in a very important position to make decisions and carry out social management work, according to Zhu Lijia, a professor of political studies with the Chinese Academy of Governance.