BEIJING, April 22 (Xinhua) -- On March 15, an online platform named "Message Board for Leaders" saw a new post pop up, reading, "We painted walls for an employer from Oct. 31 to Dec. 5, 2021, but the employer is still in arrears with our payment of 22,000 yuan (around 3,432 U.S. dollars). I hope you can help us."
The message was addressed to the Party chief of Xingtai city in north China's Hebei Province. One month later, a reply was posted, saying, "Your payment was made on April 13."
This is one of some 3 million messages that have been replied to since 2012 on the "Message Board for Leaders," an online platform where ordinary people in China share their problems and suggestions concerning public affairs directly with Party and government chiefs of localities across China and leading officials of departments of central authorities.
Over the years, the platform has emerged as a convenient and effective tool for communication and dialogue between the government and the people amid efforts to promote whole-process people's democracy and translate people's voices into state policies.
Chinese authorities have delivered concrete measures to solve problems in accordance with people's voices conveyed via the platform. Government employees and members of the Communist Party of China (CPC) at the primary level have seen adjustments to their workloads so that they can concentrate their energy and time on better serving the people; elderly people with no families were given subsistence subsidies by the government; problems people met in administrative procedures relating to real estate certificates were solved; children living in remote mountainous villages had their school buildings renovated; migrant workers received their back pay. The list of problems solved thanks to the platform is long.
In 2021, the Chinese government at all levels addressed 700,000 of the most pressing problems of great concern to the people by means of the platform.
The general public are also contributing their opinions and suggestions on state affairs via the platform, many of which have been enshrined in government and CPC documents.
Back in 2020, Chinese central authorities invited the general public to give suggestions on the formulation of the country's 14th Five-Year Plan (2021-2025) via online platforms for the first time. Li Dianbo, a grassroots official from north China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, submitted a suggestion on the platform, calling for building a community-based elderly care system in which senior residents help each other in performing daily care. The suggestion was adopted and included in the 14th Five-Year Plan.
In the run-up to its 20th National Congress, the CPC is making use of the platform to hear voices from the people. To date, thousands of suggestions have been made since the platform opened for such submissions in mid-April. ■
