CLEAN UP: Balancing the need for clean streets and vendors' livelihood is a major problem for urban management (YUANG ZHENG)

Changes From Within

The Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development recently said it would reform the current urban management system, which will make mayors directly accountable for the work. The plan is soliciting public feedback.

Mayors' involvement should mean more importance to be attached to urban management. However, how will mayors do the job? Generally speaking, mayors will ask district heads to take responsibility, who will then ask lower-level officials to carry out the tasks. Ultimately it is still urban management officers who will do the daily work. It boils down to the same staff and the same work model and probably no tangible changes will happen.

Without effective management, cities will be in a mess. However, sometimes unfriendly law enforcement activities bring conflicts. The public is more sympathetic to street vendors than urban management officers who are busy keeping the former from the streets.

The urban management team actually should be a volunteer institution, composed of college students, civil servants, retirees and community workers. They could help keep order and the environment clean. The real problem lies in the bureaucratic operation of current urban management system, which relies on a simple organized team to do the work mechanically.

The Beijing News

Real Proof

In recent years, the holiday volunteering program has become a compulsory subject in most middle and primary schools in China. However, at the same time, it is increasingly becoming a major headache for many students.

With the new semester around the corner, many students and their parents have to fabricate certificates to prove they had participated in the program even though they never took it seriously. Worse still, the fraud was connived by some schools.

It's not that Chinese students do not need to learn to do the right thing in a social setting. Instead, the holiday volunteering program should be strengthened. The most important thing is that the program should not revolve around the participation rate. Schools should give students enough time to participate in social work by reducing homework during holidays.

In the meantime, the assessment procedure must be made more rational. Students could be asked to write about the experience gained and a signature of his (her) monitor should suffice. As long as students can really learn something from social work, why is the proof of participation regarded so important?

Yangcheng Evening News

Transparent Charities

The Ministry of Civil Affairs is reportedly drafting a regulation on the disclosure of details of charitable donations. This is long overdue and also a way to curb the sharp decrease in charity donations.

Chinese people are very enthusiastic in charity. So what has led to the recent decline? Of the many reasons, the most striking thing is that donors are worried about where their donations end up.

Their worry is not groundless. For example, of the 28 charity social organizations that received relief donations after the May 12 earthquake in Sichuan Province in May 2008, only 12 have published details of where the money went. Besides, there is no lack of cases where officials embezzle charity donations.

What the government should do is to make charity information, especially the whereabouts of donations, more transparent. But it's a pity that only a small proportion of the country's charity institutions open their financial reports up to the public. The Provisional Rules on Disaster Relief Fund Administration and the Law on Donation for Public Welfare require that charity institutions should make their information transparent. Despite this, punishment for law-breaking activities is not specified.

It's hoped that the new regulation will mandate charity institutions to make their financial information transparent, and stipulate that the whereabouts of donations must be kept under supervision of relevant departments. Meanwhile, those who refuse to reveal the information to the public must be severely punished, so as to save the image of China's charity institutions.

Yanzhao Metropolis Daily

Fame and Food

The State Administration for Industry and Commerce recently issued a new regulation, which prescribes that celebrities will be punished for being involved in false food advertising from August 11.

Due to their public influence, celebrities can have a big effect on consumers if they endorse a commodity. That's why their services are sought after. Celebrities' names can boost sales and help make unknown brands household names. The problem is that some of the commodities they endorse are actually of very poor quality.

While earning money, celebrities should at the same time be responsible. When it comes to food commercials, they should know the involved products well, listen to feedback from consumers and scrutinize quality examination results. They should never endorse a product that they have never tried personally just for the sake of a big pay out. Otherwise, the social ramifications could be disastrous.

Yangcheng Evening News