Chinese officials named and shamed for ‘lying flat’, sending shock waves through civil service
- Naming of eight low-level leisure-loving’ clerks in reprimand notice sparks debate as pressure grows on bureaucracy’s rank and file
- The practice of publicly shaming civil servants has been growing, with a number of provinces launching anti-slacker campaigns
Nanshan, in the city of Foshan in Guangdong province, sparked an online debate when the reprimand notice against the clerks, dated December 28, started circulating on China’s social media platforms in the new year, with many questioning the radical approach.
“With approval by the town party committee’s leading group on work style and efficiency, these eight comrades are … included in the list of Nanshan Town’s 2023 lying-flat and leisure-loving personnel,” the notice said.
A Nanshan government employee named Huang confirmed on Friday that the name-and-shame announcement was genuine. The list was the result of “interviews, ground surveys, democratic evaluation and review”, he said.
A search of local information web pages shows the targeted workers are all among the lowest grade of officials, variously managing a local grid, neighbourhood committee, or working in the town’s cultural and tourism office.
According to Huang, the eight officials all ranked last in their units and face a coaching period to “help them to recognise their problems and improve their work”.