Success of central govt car reform good, but what about provinces?

Officials below ministerial level will no longer be provided with a car and a driver and public servants will now receive a "proper" allowance to cover their own choice of transportation. [Photo/Xinhua]

The National Development and Reform Commission said on Wednesday that it had completed the reform of central government-owned automobiles, freezing unnecessary ones for sale and offering subsidies to certain staff in exchange. Comments:

The central government should be praised for its efficiency, but what about local governments? According to the schedule announced last year, the reform was to be completed within 2015, but until now only five of the 30 provinces have published their plans, with a few having just started implementing the reform. With only three and a half months left in the year, it is highly possible that many provinces might fail to keep to the schedule. Let us hope those in charge of reform in the provinces are held accountable for the failure.

Beijing News, Sept 17

The central government is rather efficient, but such efficiency would not have been possible without the ongoing anti-corruption campaign that deterred many officials from breaking regulations. Will some of them purchase cars with taxpayers' money in the future when the fight against corruption is no longer so pressing? Regulations and strict implementation mechanisms are needed to make sure the reform is effective in the long run.

Procuratorial Daily, Sept 17

It is good news that central government departments have optimized the number of cars they purchase with public money. However, there is a bigger gray area in State-owned enterprises, which make profits from the market, and thus have more money to buy cars for officials. The central leadership needs to expedite reform in this area, too.

dahe.cn, Sept 17

Many want to know how government agencies should be supervised to ensure they do not buy additional cars for officials. Why not think creatively? Just paint government cars in special colors and inscribe special texts on them so that people in the streets can easily recognize which one belongs to which department, and when they appear in places they are not supposed to be in, people can report them to higher authorities. As long as additional cars cannot be used, officials will not buy them with public funds.

Hu Xingdou, a professor of governmental economics at Beijing Institute of Technology, via micro blog, Sept 17

(China Daily 09/18/2015 page8)