Improving the management of SOEs would help boost public trust
in them, says an article in Oriental Morning Post. The
following is an excerpt:
After Li Rongrong, chief of the State-owned Assets Supervision
and Administration Commission (SASAC), predicted State-owned
enterprises (SOE) would have better-than-expected profits this
year, there were doubts whether their profits would be earned
because of their monopoly positions or whether they had fulfilled
their social responsibilities.
Many SOEs have publicized their donations to charity. Petro
China said it had donated 720 million yuan ($96 million) from 2003
to 2007, the State Grid Company said it had donated 410 million
yuan in the last four years while China Life said it donates 15
million yuan every year and has established a charity fund.
But a survey showed nearly 70 percent of the public feel the
SOEs have not made a remarkable contribution to boosting social
welfare, despite their claims.
The general feeling is that the public does not have close ties
with the SOEs.
Very few people know who are in charge of the SOEs, their
business structure, their profits or their contributions to
society.
Under such circumstances, it is only natural that many view the
SOEs as commercial giants earning lucrative profits by taking
advantage of their their monopoly positions and other
resources.
One way to gain public trust in the SOEs is to let the public
actually see the benefits SOEs bring to their lives.
Li said the SASAC would make public the income of SOE managers
when time is right. He also said the SOEs would submit their
assets, budgets and other financial records to the national
legislative for review.
If all these plans are carried out, the SOEs would become
businesses owned by the people in the real sense, and would
definitely gain their trust.
(China Daily December 25, 2007)