"China’s anticorruption drive called drain on economy" by Simon Denyer, Washington Post February 15, 2015
$eriou$ly?
BEIJING — As China moves into the third year of its far-reaching anticorruption campaign, experts and officials are worrying that without the grease of bribes, projects are stagnating and the economy is taking a hit.
No wonder the AmeriKan economy is allegedly humming along.
Across China, more than 100,000 officials have been disciplined since President Xi Jinping’s anticorruption drive began, according to the government’s own figures.
My goodne$$.
As a result, many others are sitting on their hands, delaying decisions and failing to grant approvals for investment projects, either out of fear that they could be caught up in a future corruption inquiry, or because, without a bribe, they simply lack any incentive to act.
I've heard it many times here: if you are doing nothing wrong and have nothing to hide.... ????
The problem has become so severe it is ringing alarm bells at the top levels of government.
Mine must be deaf.
Last week, Premier Li Keqiang demanded that local officials sign a written pledge to carry out major economic and social policies faithfully, saying that their dereliction of duty had slowed the economy, according to state media.
My guys take oaths -- and then violate the f*** out of them.
Some officials, he said, were ‘‘taking a wait-and-see attitude, being reluctant to implement major policies of the central government,’’ China Daily reported.
The U.S. did that and...
.... well, you know the rest.
Ren Jianming, a professor of clean governance at Beihang University in Beijing, said officials were not used to a system that ran without corruption.
‘‘Developers don’t believe that, without bribing, they would get a project, and officials don’t believe that, without bribing, they could be promoted,’’ he said. ‘‘They don’t trust a clean system.
‘‘Officials have stopped or delayed making decisions to avoid risks,’’ Ren said. “Even if they don’t take a bribe now, they might be suspected or reported. Then their previous corruption would be found out.’’
Graft has certainly not gone away, but the anticorruption campaign has taken a toll on the sales of luxury goods and on business at high-end restaurants and hotels.
It really is a paper of and for the 1%.
The new reluctance among Chinese officials to act appears, as Li said, to have accelerated China’s economic slowdown, although the exact effect is hard to measure — not least because official statistics are not particularly credible.
At that point I broke out laughing thinking about the economic reports coming from my government and its mouthpiece media. Talk about pot hollering kettle.
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Ummmm.... if the statistics are not credible how does the Washington Post know the anti-corruption drive is a drain?
Related: Killing This Chinese Post
Maybe China is on to something there.
NDU:
"The United States is challenging China at the World Trade Organization, alleging the Chinese government unfairly subsidizes exports in seven industries. The Office of the US Trade Representative said Wednesday that China designates certain export companies as ‘‘demonstration bases’’ so they can receive free or discounted services from suppliers. The United States says China paid the suppliers almost $1 billion over three years to provide those services. Getting help are textile and clothing makers, advanced materials and metals companies, light industrial firms, specialty chemical manufacturers, medical product makers, and agricultural firms. The US move is the first step toward bringing a formal case against China. The US Trade Representative will try to reach a settlement with China; if that fails, the United States can ask the WTO to rule on the dispute."
FURTHER UPDATES:
"China takes down senior leader amid anti-corruption campaign" Associated Press February 17, 2015
BEIJING — A former top official accused of taking bribes in return for government positions has been expelled from the ruling Communist party and stripped of all government positions, a party watchdog said Monday.
Su Rong, a former provincial party leader and former vice chairman of China’s top political advisory body, also will probably face criminal charges.
Su is one of the most senior officials to have fallen in President Xi Jinping’s sweeping anticorruption drive. Xi has warned that rampant corruption, if unaddressed, threatens the party’s rule.
Last year, the public applauded when Xi took down Zhou Yongkang, a former member of the all-powerful standing committee of the party’s Political Bureau, on corruption charges. Zhou is the highest-ranking official, albeit retired, to be snared in Xi’s campaign.
Su, 66, came under investigation last year when he was vice chairman of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Congress, which makes his ouster remarkable.
Before he took the national position, Su had served as the provincial party chief for three provinces — Qinghai, Gansu, and Jiangxi. That position has more power than that of a provincial governor.
The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Communist Party’s top watchdog agency, said Monday in a written statement that Su violated party disciplines by altering decisions arbitrarily. The commission said Su also took “huge amounts of bribes” and, in turn, sought promotions for others and benefits for businesses.
The party agency said that Su’s acts have caused significant losses in state assets and that he was responsible for severe corruption in Jiangxi.
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Ju$t hurting their own economy.
"Hong Kong captain gets 8 years for deadly 2012 sea collision" Associated Press February 17, 2015
HONG KONG — A Hong Kong ferry captain was sentenced Monday to eight years in prison for the deaths of 39 people in a 2012 accident that was the southern Chinese coastal city’s biggest maritime disaster in decades.
A judge handed down the sentence to Lai Sai-ming after his conviction Saturday on charges of manslaughter and endangering the safety of others at sea, according to a Department of Justice spokeswoman.
The captain of the other boat involved in the collision, Chow Chi-wai, was given a nine-month sentence. He was cleared by a jury of manslaughter but convicted of endangering others at sea.
All of those killed, including eight children, and most of the nearly 100 injured were aboard Chow’s boat.
The two captains had blamed each other for the Oct. 1, 2012, collision, which came as a shock to the former British colony, renowned for efficient and safe public transport networks.
The verdicts came down after a 60-day trial and four days of deliberations.
Lai’s commuter ferry was heading from Hong Kong Island to the outlying island of Lamma when the collision occurred. The smaller boat, owned by the Hong Kong Electric Co., was taking employees of the company on a harbor excursion to watch a fireworks display.
Officials said the Lai’s vessel went against international rules for avoiding collisions at sea.
Fleets of ferries form the backbone of the city’s transportation network, running frequently to outlying islands, the Chinese mainland, and the gambling enclave of Macau.
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Also see: Captain in deadly boat collision guilty
