China's local governments 'do it now'

Unnecessary move?

"Isn't it just a civil servants' job to solve people's problems well and fast?"

Netizens raised their doubts after Zhijiantong, a microblogger posted a photo of the Do it Now office plate on Sina Weibo, an instant information publishing platform.

According to the Civil Servant Law, government officials are obliged to "make efforts to improve work efficiency and serve the people wholeheartedly," but the clause is rendered meaningless by lack of sound supervision and accountability.

"Do it Now Offices address perceived lazy governance, turning former regulators into public service providers," said Li.

To netizens who suspect the 101 offices mean overstaffing and a waste on public funds, Li replies that all personnel were organized from within the same departments. "Besides the responsibilities of their own posts, Do it Now officials assume extra workload to serve the city," Li said.

"A radical cure for an inefficient governance depends on the system design at the top. Do it Now Offices remake and optimize administrative processes, but do not replace existing procedures," said Li Chunmiao, research fellow with the Development Research Center of the State Council.

Do it Now is not the original creation of the Qufu government. Cities around the country have been actively exploring ways to improve governance following a rallying call to reform by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang during the 2013 meeting of the World Economic Forum.

Similar slogans and offices have sprung up in the provinces of Fujian, Guangdong and Hubei in east, south and central China, provoking controversy over local government ability to sustain such "upgraded" public services.

Xu Hang, political science professor with Nankai University, is prepared to give credit to the practices of local governments.