Local Governments Scapegoat Residents Over Potemkin Toilets and Smelly Water

Local Governments Scapegoat Residents Over Potemkin Toilets and Smelly Water

Two incidents this month highlight the ways in which local governments’ action on public health and safety measures are often geared more toward shielding authorities from accountability or financial costs rather than supporting the public. Recent investigations revealed that Jishan County in Shanxi province spent 2.3 million RMB (nearly $320,000 U.S. dollars) to build 23 new public toilet facilities, but kept the doors locked, forcing villagers…