What does Law on Administrative Permission Bring to Common People?

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Last updated at: (Beijing Time) Thursday, September 04, 2003

What does Law on Administrative Permission Bring to Common People?

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The law on administrative permission, which receives wide attention from home and abroad, was passed at the 4th Session of the just concluded 10th National People's Congress (NPC). The publication of the law is of unprecedented significance whether in terms of the battle against corruption, legal construction, or its link with international standards and whatnot.

As relevant experts have pointed out, the law on administrative permission involves both administrative organizations' prior administrative management of social and economic affairs and the vital interests of civil legal persons and other organizations. Perhaps it may still be difficult for ordinary people to temporarily feel the influence of the law on the former, but they will have a strong experience in regard to the influence of the law on the latter-protection of the immediate interests of the civil legal persons.

The standardized characteristics of the said law set the common people at ease in their daily life. Through establishing a standard system of administrative permission, the law will properly handle relations between government and market, government and society as well as public and private powers. Besides, the law clearly defines what items need to set up an administrative permission while other items need not, this is an extremely significant stipulation in this law.

For quite a long time many enterprises have assigned a special person to cope with miscellaneous examinations, apportionment and fines. Whoever assumes the post must be an "able person" who is smooth and slick, has a ready tongue and can deal with all people at a feast. Many of those laid-off workers who start undertakings by themselves and non-local legal persons who invest in the establishment of industries do not worry about their operation and management, their real headaches are caused by those administrative organs which conduct "management" in name and impose "interference" in reality. Things that need government help find nobody in charge, whereas fees charged under various names and with great elasticity invariably pester you as long as your enterprise exists. One does not pay the fee willingly, but if he refuses to pay he would provoke the administrative department.

The clear stipulations on permissible items as laid down in the law on administrative permission make it possible to greatly reduce government departments' interference in the affairs of the legal persons of enterprises, thus making people feel more secured and relieved.

The efficiency-related principle of the law on administrative permission has fortified people's confidence in life. People having dealings with government departments share a common experience: "yamen" (government office in feudal China), big or small, does not want to be "slighted". So to get others to treat it "with respect", its common practice is that it orders those coming for the handling of matters to do legwork and to affix official seals that seem to be unending. When you are asked to affix 10 public seals at a "yamen", nobody would tell you which 10 public seals are to be affixed, instead you are told how to affix the next seal only after you've finished affixing one seal, you will never be able to have something accomplished unless you've come for 10 times.

Although that may be somewhat exaggerated, the "yamen style of work" formed over many years, is hardly deniable. The cause of this phenomenon sometimes lies in the irresponsibility of working staff, but the fundamental reason lies in the working procedures under which the staff members are assigned to be responsible for one section of work, and they fail to keep each other informed. If you ask a question, no one could give you an all-round, authoritative answer. The result can only be that you will be at a loss for how to begin with work in the next section after completing work in this section. The law on administrative permission stipulates that for the implementation of administrative permission, there must be a window opened to the outside, when a matter involves several departments, it must be handled in a centralized and unified way. With great improvement of government efficiency, people's confidence in creating life will be enormously strengthened.

From the high plane of enacting a law for the people, no matter how good the original intention of a law is, its ultimate objectives are nothing more than to push forward the construction of material and spiritual civilizations and to make common people happy and satisfied. The promulgation of this law has at least enabled us to see a bright future featuring the excellent blend of government administration and people's life.

By PD Online Staff Zhu Lizhen

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