Gov't seeks to rein in use of official cars
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The government is studying a plan to reform its official vehicle management system, which has been criticized for years for wasting public funds, the Beijing Times reported Monday.
The National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC) says it is looking into the reform, an issue that has been raised in its proposal on major work on reforms for the economic system for the year 2010, the report said. The State Council, or the cabinet, approved the proposal in May.
There are over 2 million registered official cars used in the government or government-funded agencies, on which 150 billion yuan ($22.6 dollars) to 200 billion yuan is spent annually. The number doesn't include those used in schools, hospitals, State-owned enterprises and the military.
An official car costs about 60,000 yuan ($9,036) a year, four times that of a non-official vehicle. Two thirds of the time, the cars are for personal and not business use.
The Revolutionary Committee of the Chinese Kuomintang (RCCK), the party with the second largest number of seats in China's political advisory body, the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, submitted a proposal to promote the reform in March.
The number of official vehicles should be reduced and officials below department or bureau-level should not enjoy the use of dedicated cars, the RCCK said. It also suggested the government rent cars from taxi companies and set up an independent institution to monitor the usage of official cars.
Wu Jinghua, an official from the RCCK, told the Global Times Monday that some of the proposals may be adopted, as the NDRC told the party earlier that it may "turn to the RCCK for consultation."
In reply to the RCCK, the NDRC said China is ready for the reform in terms of the development of its economy, improved social transportation services and popularization of family cars.
Reforms of the outdated system began a long time ago, but most were gradually abolished along the way, Wang Yukai, professor of public governance at the Chinese Academy of Governance, told the Global Times Monday.
"The ones who use official cars are those in power and who are making policies," Wang gave as a reason for why the reforms have failed.
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