During the Olympic Games in Beijing, residents were impressed by the blue sky over the city. This was so because the air is very polluted in Beijing, but for the Olympic Games they did a lot effort against pollution. For example they sharply reduced the number of vehicles on the roads, about 70% of government-owned cars.
This was such a success that the Beijing Municipality decided to continue the car restrictions. But now it seems that Beijing's authorities don’t have any problems with the car restriction and operate as good as before.
This raised a big question: if they could function so well without so many cars, why did it spend so much tax money to buy and maintain so many vehicles in the first place?
Now, there is a big focus on the issue in China. If we compare the amount of money that China spends to education, 610.4 billion Yuan, and the amount of money for government-owned cars, 600 billion Yuan, I think it’s logical that the Chinese people ask questions...
A lot of the government-owned cars are not only used for what they serve, but a lot of officials also make private trips with their cars to famous holiday spots, pick their children up at school,...
Now the question is raising how many cars the Chinese government really needs. I think that’s quite logical because the people pay taxes that are used to buy cars for the Chinese government, who doesn’t need all those cars. Their tax money should better be invested in education or social security for example, instead of wasting it to unnecessary cars.
This also has an other positive aspect. China is finally doing something about their pollution. They are known as one of the most polluting countries in the world, so I think it’s a very positive fact that the people in Beijing now are asking questions if it’s really necessary to use so many cars. This only can lead to a more ‘green’ way of living and producing, which is really necessary.
source : http://www.atimes.com/atimes/China/JK25Ad01.html
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I agree completely with Michiel. As a tax payer you have the right to know how your money gets spent by the government. More transparency would be very good to deal with corruption and gives China a trust able image. Also the initiatives for less cars are very positive. It can only improve China's air quality and that's better for the people.
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