Since the exposure of scandals such as Guo Meimei’s flaunting of wealth, the credibility of the Chinese Communist Party’s official charities has been questioned, and the amount of social donations they receive has dropped sharply. (Peter Parks/AFP via Getty Images)
[The Epoch Times, December 25, 2023](Reported by Epoch Times reporter Li Jing) The Red Cross Society of China has always been officially controlled by the Chinese Communist Party, and scandals continue. After the recent 6.2-magnitude earthquake in Gansu Province, the local government required private charities to leave the disaster area and leave donations and charity materials behind, sparking controversy in public opinion.
Chinese Communist Party officials ban private disaster relief teams from entering disaster areas
At about 23:00 on December 18, a 6.2-magnitude earthquake occurred in Jishishan County, Linxia Prefecture, Gansu Province, causing a large number of casualties and damaging hundreds of thousands of houses in the earthquake area. It is currently the middle of winter, with local temperatures as low as minus 15 degrees Celsius. A large number of victims are sleeping rough on the streets and are severely lacking in supplies. After the earthquake, many Chinese companies and foundations announced donations of money and materials to support the disaster areas.
According to local media, well-known Chinese singer Han Hong organized a rescue team and personally led the team to the disaster area to participate in the rescue operation. The Han Hong Charity Foundation announced on the 19th that the Han Hong Foundation Board of Directors decided to donate 2 million yuan (1 million yuan in cash, 1 million yuan in materials) to the disaster-stricken areas in Gansu Province and Qinghai Province. The first batch of materials will focus on cold protection materials. and self-heating food (halal), etc.
On the evening of December 19, Han Hong posted a message saying: “Thank you friends in the entertainment industry! Han Hong’s team has set off for the disaster area.” As of 19:00 on the evening of the 19th, the Han Hong Foundation received a total of 25 literary and artistic workers from 4 companies. Music/film and television companies’ loving donations totaled RMB 7.655 million.
The Love Charity Foundation Weibo has been updating the rescue situation on its website. On the 23rd, the Han Hong Love Foundation suddenly announced that it would close the fundraising channel. This news has caused widespread concern and speculation in the society.
The official website of the Han Hong Charity Foundation shows that the public welfare project of “Gansu Earthquake Emergency Support” has been marked as “fundraising ended” and has raised 65.69 million yuan in safe donations.
Independent commentator Wang Waizui posted on channel, and transferred the more than 60 million donations received previously to the Red Cross account.
Several mainland portals also reported relevant news. Some netizens said: “The Gansu earthquake made the Red Cross extremely embarrassed. Many people donated to Han Hong but not to the Red Cross. The professionals lost their jobs and the amateurs became responsible. This may be a kind of sadness. Ask yourself why? If you turn a public welfare organization into a personal enterprise, no one will believe you.”
Some mainland media published a commentary article saying that even in disaster areas, the water is still very deep, and it is inevitable that some people will take advantage of the situation in the disaster area to make a lot of money in the disaster area and the country. It’s no wonder that Han Hong and others showed up in person in the disaster-stricken areas of Gansu.
Some analysts also believe that the authorities prohibited private rescue teams from entering the disaster area to avoid affecting the “great and upright” image displayed by the official rescue team.
Gansu Red Cross Disaster Relief Scandal
After the authorities asked social rescue forces to evacuate the disaster area, netizens also exposed the Gansu Provincial Red Cross’s tricks in the disaster relief.
According to the Gansu Provincial Red Cross Disaster Relief Material Procurement Cost List provided by the whistleblower, the official purchase price of a hand warmer is 500 yuan, while the average online price is basically between tens or more than 100 yuan; the official purchase of a 12 square meter cotton tent It costs 2,200 yuan, while a “windproof, rainproof, three-layered cotton” tent sold by a mainland e-commerce platform is priced at 529 yuan; in addition, the official price of a grain and oil package of 5 kilograms of rice (or flour) plus 900 ml of cooking oil The average price of cotton-padded clothes and quilts is 100 yuan.
At the same time, a management fee of 1.62 million yuan was charged for the purchased materials.
The whistleblower disclosed that almost every material purchased was much higher than the market price, and the price of almost every item was an integer. The purchase of bulk commodities should be lower than the market price. If you bargain for a discount of one yuan per item, you can save tens of thousands of yuan.
The source said that the purchase fee of 16.26 million yuan and the management fee of 1.62 million yuan were easily taken away. And is there something fishy about the purchase fee that is higher than the market price? When a catastrophic disaster occurs, we have the money and the strength to contribute. With the whole country paying attention, there are still some moths who take advantage of the situation. Are we really not afraid of chilling the hearts of the people?
After the above-mentioned scandal was exposed, the Chinese Communist Party’s official media refuted the rumors for the Gansu Provincial Red Cross Society. The Gansu Provincial Red Cross Society also publicly denied it on the 24th, claiming that “all funds, even one penny, will be used in the disaster area.”
According to the official website, the Gansu Provincial Red Cross Society was established in 1985 and was affiliated with the former Provincial Health Department. In 2003, the Provincial Red Cross Society was directly contacted by the leadership of the provincial government. In 2019, the Party Committee and Discipline Inspection Commission of the Provincial Red Cross Society were established. At present, there are 22 employees in government agencies and institutions, and there are 23 actual personnel.
Prior to this, the Red Cross Society of Gansu Province had exposed scandals. After a 6.6-magnitude earthquake occurred in Dingxi City, Gansu Province in July 2013, the Gansu Red Cross Society also exposed the “sky-high price of mineral water” incident.
China’s official charities continue to face scandals
The Red Cross Society monopolized by the CCP has been constantly exposed to scandals. Since 2011, the Luwan District Red Cross Society’s high catering fees, Guo Meimei’s wealth-showing incident, celebrities’ fake donations and staged photo shoots, and the “big-bellied girl” donation delay incident have been exposed one after another. , Each leader of the General Conference is equipped with two luxury cars, etc. With the substantial loss of credibility, the amount of social donations it received has dropped sharply.
In addition to the Red Cross, official charities such as the China Children’s Charity Aid Foundation also have constant scandals.
It is worth mentioning that in January 2020, Wu Huayan, a poor college student from Guizhou who weighed only 43 pounds, passed away. The charity “9958 Children’s Emergency Rescue Center” used two fundraising platforms at the same time to raise funds without the knowledge of Wu and his family. It raised a total of more than one million yuan in one week, but only paid 2 yuan for Wu. Ten thousand yuan. “9958 Children’s Emergency Rescue Center” is affiliated to the China Children’s Charity Aid Foundation. (Click to view related reports)
Editor in charge: Li Qiong#
2023-12-25 01:27:12
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