(China Daily)
Updated: 2007-08-13 06:44

When giving rewards, legitimate procedures are more important than setting a limit to the amount, says an article in China Youth Daily. The following is an excerpt:

Three government departments in Chongqing jointly issued a circular lately, setting the monetary limit for awards paid to civil servants. It says all awards should be authorized by the municipal bureau of personnel and the highest should not exceed 10,000 yuan ($1,300) for an individual or 50,000 yuan for a group.

This is the municipal government's effort to curb the abuse of such awards. Such a self-restriction seems plausible, but the public's response is not so good. People doubt whether the rule can really work. They want to see the regulated use of power in a reliable checks-and-balances mechanism.

Civil servants are hired by taxpayers and the government's revenue comes from taxpayers. Therefore it is never appropriate for the government to decide which civil servants should be rewarded. Any plan to award a civil servant should be authorized by the local people's congress; its implementation should be reported to the congress and the effects should be evaluated by it. Of course, the people's congress can authorize government departments to execute the awards through the form of legislation. And the premise should be that procedures are transparent with a strict accountability mechanism.

But the current situation is that awards get out of hand because there is no accountability mechanism.

Take the protection of the environment, for example. No one was punished for growing the economy at the price of pollution, but now it is seen as a political achievement to improve air quality, and is rewarded. To reward public servants for fulfilling their responsibilities is just wrong.

(China Daily 08/13/2007 page4)