mandag 9. mars 2020

'Gratitude education': Wuhan boss faces backlash over calls to thank leaders

Wuhan’s top party official has come under fire after saying the government would implement “gratitude education” so citizens can properly thank the Chinese Communist party for its efforts fighting the coronavirus outbreak.

In comments published on Saturday, Wuhan party secretary Wang Zhonglin said: “The people of Wuhan are heroic people who understand gratitude,” echoing previous comments by Chinese leader Xi Jinping.“[We] must through various channels carry out gratitude education among the citizens of the whole city as well as cadres so that they thank the general secretary [Xi Jinping], thank the communist party, listen to the party’s words, follow the party’s way, and create strong positive energy,” said Wang, who was sent to Wuhan in February to replace the former party secretary, amid rising public anger over local authorities’ handling of the crisis.

Wang’s statement was met with such scorn that the party affiliated paper that published his comments, the Changjiang Daily, appeared to remove the original article. Chinese media has reportedly been instructed not to publish the article, publish commentaries or mention the incident in anyway.