时间：2022-06-26 11:12:32
In his opening speech at this year’s session of the National People’s Congress （NPC）， Premier Li Keqiang stressed that the government’s leading policy priority is “the people’s livelihood.” Such a pledge ties in with recent government promises on leading areas of public discontent namely， air pollution， food safety and housing prices.
In the government work report delivered to the NPC， officials admitted that they face a wide range of challenges， singling out general pollution of the country’s air， water and soil， as well as highlighting food and drug standards， forced land appropriation， widespread corruption and inadequate resources allocated to healthcare， social security and education.
In the past， “livelihood issues” have been considered purely economic. Consequently， the government’s solutions have been restricted to offering a bigger “share of the pie” to the people by increasing public spending. Unfortunately， as China now faces an economic slowdown on almost all fronts， securing a greater allocation for social welfare from those in charge of the budget has become difficult.
Moreover， what the Chinese people increasingly demand are not simple economic handouts or subsidies， but systemic reforms to the system that will allow individuals greater social mobility.
To a large extent， popular welfare allocation in China is not an economic， but a political consideration. Most public concerns over individual security and wellbeing stem from a lack of political rights and the general inequality inherent in the social system.
For example， urban and rural residents do not have equal property rights， nor does every citizen have the same entitlement to public services. Moreover， issues such as air pollution are claimed by many to stem from a lack of political franchise， as those with a direct stake in the issue people living in polluted cities have no role in the decisionmaking process.
In order to address these problems， the government needs to enfranchise the citizenry.
China’s new leaders have made many reform pledges， promising to create a fair and just political， legal， and economic system， building on pledges made by their predecessors. Pledges are certainly welcome， but delivering on them would be even more so.
During the Two Sessions， a few of these promises were fleshed out. Rural residents will reportedly be permitted more property rights through reforms to land ownership policies. The government has also promised to establish a unified social security system. However， the urban-rural divide， enshrined in the hukou or household registration system， has remained intact.
There are signs that China’s decision makers also realize that a simplistic economic approach can no longer resolve social problems. Finance Minister Lou Jiwei， for example， admitted that past policies to raise China’s taxable income threshold have failed to address the disproportionate tax burden on China’s poor， as income tax only applies to salaries， and China’s rich typically derive the bulk of their income from other areas.
Lou has promised that the government will “take a systematic approach” in its future taxation policies and will take a “variety of factors” into account when levying taxes.
But what the Chinese government needs to do next is to translate its words into actions. Only when it visibly strives to conduct more profound reforms to create a fair and just system will it win hearts and minds. The Chinese people have heard enough promises.