China's top statistician has pledged to provide good quality
data for the government and the public.
Li Deshui, director of the National Bureau of
Statistics, said the statistics departments at all levels will
strictly follow the Statistics Law to ensure the provision of
quality data.
"This is crucial for the long-term development of China's
statistics work," Li said at a symposium in Beijing Monday marking
the 20th anniversary of the promulgation of the country's
Statistics Law.
Statistics departments will beef up inspections and punish
unlawful activities in statistical work, such as fraud and
deception, he said.
"Fraud and deception are not only a serious political issue, but
also a kind of corruption," Li said.
Since 1985, the government has conducted five nationwide
statistics inspections, during which a number of unlawful
activities were discovered, he said.
During the past several years, statistics departments at
different levels have discovered more than 10,000 unlawful acts in
statistics work every year.
Last year, 18,300 unlawful acts were uncovered.
To let more people know about the Statistics Law, statistics
departments at all levels undertook a series of activities to
spread information about the Statistics Law, Li said.
The activities included three major nationwide contests on the
content and purpose of Statistics Law, conducted in 1993, 1998 and
2003, he said.
As a result, awareness and observance of the Statistics Law
improved considerably, he said.
A recent survey by the National Bureau of Statistics suggests
that 99.4 percent of the leaders in companies and institutions
surveyed said they were familiar with the Statistics Law, and 82.9
percent of them said they had studied it. More than 55 percent of
urban dwellers knew there was a Statistics Law.
He Luli, vice-chairwoman of the Standing Committee of the
National People's Congress, said the Statistics Law plays an
important role in reflecting the real situation of China. The law
also helps government officials make important decisions and allows
foreign countries know more about China, she said.
(China Daily December 9, 2003)