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Popularity of Government Jobs in China Point to Corruption
Thousands of college graduates flock to take the civil servant exam in China. Screen capture of CCTV news feature, under a Creative Commons License from Global Voices Online.
Why are government jobs so popular in China?
“Putin once said: ‘The popularity of a country’s government jobs indicates how corrupt the country is,’” according to a Henan University Official Weibo account translated by Global Voices Online.
More than 1.5 million people registered to take the National Public Servant Exam, South China Morning Post reported – a record – and more than 30 times the number sitting the exam a decade ago, according to Global Voices.
A written test must be passed before “a tough interview process” according to the website before a government job can be had.
Nonetheless, online Chinese derided the rampant corruption of the communist regime.
“We hate corrupt officials, yet we desperately apply for the position as civil servants; we curse monopoly, yet we try every way possible to join the well-paid state enterprises; we make fun of the hidden rules in society, yet we are busy looking for guanxi [personal connections]. This makes me angry, not because I think that is not fair, but because when we are in a disadvantaged position, we are not trying to eliminate the inequality, but trying to gain a favorable position in the unfair system. Such selfishness deserves our reflection.”
-Ma.
CCTV host Bai Yansong indirectly provokes thoughts: “When everyone wants to be a ‘civil servant,’ it probably is not a servant after all.”
Zhushi: If many outstanding talents in a country all try so hard to seek government jobs, that means there’s a big problem with the system. In foreign countries, usually first-rate talents become entrepreneurs, the second-rate talents work for the government. This indicates that in China, either it’s hard to make money at private companies or it’s really easy to make money as a government employee.
-Translations by Global Voices.
