From Chinese Press

Stop this housing scam

(China Daily)
Updated: 2010-05-27 11:02

The Rizhao city government in Shandong province recently acquired 836 mu (about 55.7 hectares) of land to build houses - priced at least 30 percent below the market rate - for its about 5,100 officials. This highlights the unscrupulousness of some local governments, says an article in China Business Times. Excerpts:

The Rizhao city government has planned a huge housing project that will in no way benefit the common people.

Actually, the officials are in for a huge "subsidy" from the local government. They will not only pay 30 percent less than the market price for their houses, but also get more than the normal time allotted to pay the land and construction costs.

As if that was not enough, the local government has exempted them from paying the land transfer fees. If this is not an illegal act, what is?

For all we know, government officials and employees in Rizhao may be the last group of people in urgent need of a house. After all, some departments have built staff quarters, and many officials already own one or two houses, with some owning as many as four.

In tragic contrast, statistics show that until 2007, the city had 6,000 homeless families and 15,000 households that could not afford to buy a house. Thousands of other families in suburban areas were facing similar problems.

And instead of trying to make the disadvantaged people's lives easier, these public servants are serving themselves. They don't even bat an eyelid before abusing power for personal gains and cast a blind eye to the needs of the common people.

Such arrogant abuse of power and indifference to people's rights should end immediately, and relevant supervision strengthened to uphold social equity and justice.