(China Daily)
Updated: 2008-01-25 07:31

We should use public funds more effectively, says an article in People's Daily. The following is an excerpt:

Media in Guangzhou have recently spilled much ink over of the challenges facing the local public transportation sector. The whole industry has gone from the break-even point and even the occasional profit to repeated, heavy losses, a report said.

The financial woes facing Guangzhou's public transportation sector come from various causes. Losses by government-run bodies always bring to mind the challenges of spending public money.

In recent years, governments at all levels have been investing their gradually increasing revenue in areas closely related to the public's well-being, such as education, healthcare, social security, culture and public transportation.

More and more services that were previously paid for by the masses are now funded by public finances. That is a result of economic development and fuller coffers.

Meanwhile, managing these funds has become an increasingly pressing issue. In the past, some public service sectors wasted funds while claiming a shortage of money. But now things are different. The government has more money; people are more market-oriented; the government's investment mechanisms and management have been improved.

But this does not mean the days of wasted funds are gone. In fact, as long as the system of checks and balances is incomplete, the possibility of waste is still there. Therefore, it is important for us to improve our oversight of public money.

(China Daily 01/25/2008 page8)