Absolute power in officialdom

Chapter 227 When the ruler has a certain preference, those below will follow suit even more ferventl

In officialdom, there are no permanent friends or permanent enemies, only permanent interests.

Just like Wu Zhiyuan and Gan Simiao, they were sometimes enemies and sometimes friends, sometimes friends and sometimes enemies.

After concluding his inspection tour of Jiangsu and Zhejiang, Wu Zhiyuan returned to Xindian Town.

From the fourth-floor office, I could hear the sounds of people playing pool and cheering from the fifth floor, which is the top floor.

Wu Zhiyuan enjoys sports and supports his staff in exercising, but he does not approve of playing ball during work hours.

Sun Dewang came in.

After Hu Lijin was promoted to deputy mayor, she temporarily served as director of the town's Party and government office. Wu Zhiyuan intended to have Sun Dewang succeed her as director of the town's Party and government office.

"Director Sun, are people playing pool upstairs?" Wu Zhiyuan asked casually.

"Yes. Secretary Wu, Mayor Zhang Ping enjoys playing billiards, and there are many more billiards enthusiasts in the government offices. Among the staff interest groups, billiards has the most participants."

When Hu Jinlong was the Party Secretary, he enjoyed playing basketball. Basketball hoops were specially installed in the small square, and many people played basketball after get off work. Hu Jinlong often played basketball with the cadres and staff.

After Hu Jinlong's accident, Zhang Ping had a basketball hoop delivered to the town's middle school. A new pool table was also purchased for the fifth floor.

Wu Zhiyuan laughed and said, "What the superiors like, the inferiors will follow even more fervently. I love swimming; are you suggesting the town build a swimming pool for that purpose?"

Sun Dewang smiled too.

"Director Sun, what's the matter?" Wu Zhiyuan asked.

Currently, Sun Dewang is still the deputy director of the Agriculture, Forestry and Water Resources Office.

Many people in the town are eyeing the position of director of the Party and Government Office.

Generally speaking, becoming the director of the Party and government office means that one foot is already on the fast track to promotion to deputy section-level leading cadre.

However, Sun Dewang did not mention his promotion at all. Instead, he said, "Secretary Wu, I mainly want to report to you on a problem that has been on my mind for a long time, which is the construction of high-standard farmland in the town."

Wu Zhiyuan was taken aback: "Oh? The construction of high-standard farmland is a good thing that benefits farmers, and the province and city attach great importance to it."

What's wrong with the project in our town?

"The problem is probably quite significant. The project is being overseen by Deputy Mayor Fang Qingqing, and Zhang Ping is also paying close attention to it, so progress is being made very quickly."

But the reactions I heard and the things I saw firsthand, which I observed a lot, seemed a bit off.

Sun Dewang pulled out photos and videos from his phone and showed them to Wu Zhiyuan: "Secretary Wu, look, there are a lot of problems. The fields that should have been flat and continuous are now uneven and full of potholes."

Some of the farm roads that needed repair only had a thin layer of gravel paved on them;

The irrigation project is a complete mess; once it's put into use, drought resistance, irrigation, and drainage will all be problems…

Sun Dewang addressed a wide range of issues in one go.

Wu Zhiyuan asked, "What is the standard cost for high-standard farmland construction? And which company is doing it?"

"Secretary Wu, with the provincial subsidies and matching funds from the city and county, the average construction standard is 3000 yuan per mu."

The contractor is Yonggu Construction Engineering Co., Ltd., which is registered in the city, but I heard that the actual person in charge is from this county.

This project wasn't put out to public tender; it went through competitive negotiation, and they were the ones who were ultimately chosen.

"Competitive negotiation?"

"Yes, there were two other companies involved in the negotiations at the time, but Yonggu won the bid in the end. It is said that Yonggu's proposal was more in line with the actual needs of the town."

After Yonggu won the bid, it subcontracted some sections to several small local construction teams.

I suspect that there is room for exploitation and exaggeration in terms of materials, working hours, and earthwork.

Sigh, Secretary Wu, if I may say something I shouldn't, it's because many of the country's good policies end up becoming easy targets when it comes to implementation.

Countless people have made a fortune through various engineering projects!

How many good policies have ultimately ended up being a waste of resources and causing widespread resentment!

Wu Zhiyuan pondered for a few seconds and said, "I'll make time to go and see it in person next time."

Just then, the sound of a woman crying came from downstairs.

Wu Zhiyuan walked to the window and saw a woman with disheveled hair sitting in the small square in front of the town government, stamping her feet and beating her chest, seemingly holding a pesticide bottle in her hand.

"Dewang, what's going on?" Wu Zhiyuan changed his form of address.

Sun Dewang strode to the window, glanced at it, and said, "It's Li Lamei, she lives on the planned Xindian Avenue. Secretary Wu, is that right?"

Xindian Avenue is a project that Mayor Zhang strongly advocated for last year, which involves building a major avenue near the town.

It's ostensibly for convenient transportation, but in reality, the main purpose is to sell the land on both sides for commercial development.

The Xindian Avenue was developed and operated by a private business owner, with the town's full support because it could generate revenue.

A plot of land costs 50,000 yuan, and the buyer can build a house on it.

Because it is village collective land, a property ownership certificate cannot be obtained.

However, people don't care whether they have a property ownership certificate or not; after all, you have to pay farmland occupation tax and deed tax to get a property ownership certificate.

Other townships did the same thing; the law doesn't punish everyone, and the county turned a blind eye.

Li Lamei's house is located within the demolition area. It is a two-story self-built house with a considerable area.

She felt the compensation was too low, and that she couldn't afford to buy a house in the same area, so she refused to sign the agreement.

Last month, the town organized town and village officials, urban management officers, and unemployed people to demolish her house with an excavator while she was working in the fields and no one was home…”

Wu Zhiyuan asked, "Has the compensation standard been assessed for reasonableness? Was the preliminary work done properly? Are the procedures legal?"

Sun Dewang said with a wry smile, "The standard is based on the old regulations set by the town a few years ago. The compensation price per square meter is indeed not high. Compared with the current land and housing prices in the surrounding area, the gap is quite large."

She demanded either higher compensation or that her family be rebuilt nearby.

However, Mayor Zhang and Deputy Mayor Liu, who is in charge of urban construction, made it clear that the compensation standards were established historically and that they could not make exceptions for individual households, otherwise the subsequent work would not be possible. They had to safeguard the overall situation and deliver the land on schedule.

Doing work? It involved repeatedly visiting her door, using both soft and hard tactics. Later, when the water and electricity were cut off, she refused to move even more.

In the end, they just forcibly pushed it through. What kind of demolition permits were there? These town government officials, what do they care about the law? They're just like black oxen plowing black fields.

She's made a scene about this several times. Oh, and she also said the demolition compensation wasn't public or transparent.

She said some villagers bought some pigeons on short notice, claiming they were homing pigeons, and were compensated 1,000 yuan per pigeon.

She also said that some villagers with connections received more compensation, while those without connections received less, and the compensation was distributed according to the individual's background.

They came again today, this time with a bottle of pesticide.

I've held the bottle before, but it was just to scare people; I never actually drank from it.

"Look, the town and village officials are all watching the show; they probably all think she's just doing the same old thing."

"Dewang, let's go down and take a look! What if Li Lamei is traumatized and impulsively drinks pesticide? Not only will the town government be in a very difficult position, but it's also a precious life!"

Whether the demolition compensation was open and transparent needs to be investigated. Li Lamei's opinion doesn't count, nor does the opinion of certain town officials!

Wu Zhiyuan hurried downstairs, with Sun Dewang following closely behind.

Li Lamei, in her fifties, with disheveled hair, sat on the cement ground of the square, weeping.

"My house is gone, and the compensation is so little, you're not letting me live..."

A large number of town government officials stood in front of the town government building, watching the spectacle.

Li Lamei's crying and fussing seemed to have nothing to do with them.

Town Mayor Zhang Ping had somehow appeared in front of the crowd, hands behind his back, and shouted, "Li Lamei! Here you go again! When will this end?"

"Huh? Repeatedly storming the facilities and disrupting order, what kind of nonsense is this!"

Li Lamei cried out, "Mayor Zhang, you have to stand up for me!"

My house, the house I lived in for more than ten years, is gone just like that!

"With that little money you've given me, where am I supposed to live?! You're making it impossible for a person to survive!"

Zhang Ping was furious and pointed at Li Lamei: "Make the decision? Make what decision!"

The compensation standards are clearly written in black and white!

Everyone else can accept it, so why are you the only one who's different?

So you think you're so special? I think you're just a holdout! A troublesome resident! Greedy as a snake trying to swallow an elephant!

The town is undergoing construction for the benefit of the entire town and so that everyone can live a better life!

Because of you, the entire progress of Xindian Avenue has been delayed!

Do you know how much the town loses every day?

Do you know how many businesses are waiting for the road to open so they can do business?

You only care about your own selfish interests; don't you have any sense of the bigger picture?

"I don't care about the big picture! I just want my house!"

Either give me a place to live! The little money you've given me isn't even enough to buy a toilet!

This is robbery! You're bandits!

"Outrageous! How dare you slander the government!"

Your house is an illegal structure, did you know that? Demolishing it is in accordance with the law!

Giving you compensation is the government taking care of you! Don't be ungrateful!

Who are you trying to scare with that pesticide bottle? Let me tell you, I've seen this trick a million times!

"You...you all..." Li Lamei was so angry that she trembled all over. She suddenly picked up the pesticide bottle, opened the cap, and actually drank it.