Lottery scam reveals lack of faith in notary system
Zheng LifeiChina Daily  Updated: 2004-12-25 07:14

Dong Ping, a public notary accused of being involved in a notorious lottery scandal in Xi'an, capital of Northwest China's Shaanxi Province, was finally put on trial on Tuesday.

In a lottery selling session in March this year in Xi'an, Yang Yongming, the businessman running the lottery operation, cheated people buying lottery tickets by putting the top prizes in marked envelopes that were given to accomplices.

He has already been convicted and imprisoned.

The scam was exposed when one of the marked envelopes was mistakenly given to a farmer named Liu Liang.

The case has brought the lottery system under scrutiny and has completely undermined the public's trust in it.

Dong was accused of certifying fake documents provided by Yang's accomplices, which were then used to claim the prizes.

It is not just trust in the lottery system that has been lost. Dong has damaged the public trust in the country's notary system.

The notaries are authorized to perform legal formalities and supposed to certify contracts and files according to law.

It should be a public service, but it has turned into a money-making machine in this case.

Once Dong Ping was suspected of colluding with Yang to issue these corrupt notary certificates, she only confirmed the public's fears.

The poor public image of our notary system, which should stand for credibility and fairness, is a drag on our effort to establish a credit society.

The notary system is a major part of our legal framework, and therefore should be disciplined.

Regrettably, the reality on the ground is far from satisfactory. There has been little move so far to really put a strict system in place.

As China's economy is developing at such a fast pace, the demand for notarization service is on the rise, and thus the notary system should contribute more to the push for a credit society.

The lottery case is a reminder that an overhaul is badly needed to put the notary system on a healthy track.

The case has reportedly prompted authorities to review it, and they are said to be working on a reform package to rebuild public confidence in it.

A draft notary law, according to a Xinhua report, is soon to be submitted to the National People's Congress, the country's top legislature.

This maintains that the system should be a "non-profit service" rather than a "business."

The proposed law is aimed at regulating the notary system better, which should rebuild people's trust in it. Effective enforcement is the most important thing to reach that goal.

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