Town makes wine to cut costs
Source: Xinhua |
November 1, 2012, Thursday
|
Print Edition
Print Edition
A TOWNSHIP government in south China's Guangdong Province has broken from tradition by serving home-made rice wine at government banquets, replacing the expensive liquor usually served at such events.
The Baishun Town government started using home-made wine this year, triggering an online debate over the expense of hosting extravagant banquets. While some on the Internet cheered the local government's effort to cut costs, others remain skeptical about its spending.
Ye Zhong, secretary of the town's Communist Party committee, said on Tuesday that the local government spends 4,000 yuan (US$640) monthly on expenses related to receiving government officials and investors who visit.
Ye Nanshan, a chef at the township government's cafeteria who is responsible for making the rice wine, said it is fermented using just sticky rice and water, making it far cheaper than the liquor that is usually served at banquets.
The township government consumes about 40 liters of the rice wine monthly, he said.
Lavish government banquets have been blamed for pushing up domestic liquor prices.
A bottle of Kweichow Moutai, considered the "national liquor," goes for about 1,800 yuan.
Other extravagant items served at the banquets, such as shark fin and abalone, have been seen by the public as a sign of possible corruption.
It has been estimated that the township government has saved about 4,000 yuan monthly by serving the locally made wine.
In July, the government of Wenzhou in east China's Zhejiang Province was praised for banning luxury dishes at official receptions.
The Baishun Town government started using home-made wine this year, triggering an online debate over the expense of hosting extravagant banquets. While some on the Internet cheered the local government's effort to cut costs, others remain skeptical about its spending.
Ye Zhong, secretary of the town's Communist Party committee, said on Tuesday that the local government spends 4,000 yuan (US$640) monthly on expenses related to receiving government officials and investors who visit.
Ye Nanshan, a chef at the township government's cafeteria who is responsible for making the rice wine, said it is fermented using just sticky rice and water, making it far cheaper than the liquor that is usually served at banquets.
The township government consumes about 40 liters of the rice wine monthly, he said.
Lavish government banquets have been blamed for pushing up domestic liquor prices.
A bottle of Kweichow Moutai, considered the "national liquor," goes for about 1,800 yuan.
Other extravagant items served at the banquets, such as shark fin and abalone, have been seen by the public as a sign of possible corruption.
It has been estimated that the township government has saved about 4,000 yuan monthly by serving the locally made wine.
In July, the government of Wenzhou in east China's Zhejiang Province was praised for banning luxury dishes at official receptions.
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