Ningxia restauranteur rebels against government freebies

A furious restauranteur in Tongxin county in northern China's Ningxia has a suitcase full of meal checks that officials won't pay. He's now going to try collecting under the law. I'll try to keep you posted but successful "suing of city hall" isn't usually reported in the local media.

How did I miss this 11 days ago? Oh right, the U.S. elections! Here it is, from The Australian, online a newspaper I really enjoy reading.

Restaurateur fed up with fat cats
AFP
November 01, 2004

BEIJING: A restaurateur is taking a government bureau to court for not paying for meals for years in what he vows will be the first step to recovering more than 800,000 yuan of unpaid bills from many departments.

Many businessmen in China face frustration over losses caused by officials who are known to abuse their positions and demand products and services for free.

But Yang Kaili, unlike many other victims, has gone public, filing a lawsuit against the development, planning, economic and trade bureau in Tongxin county in northern China's Ningxia province, the Xinhua news agency said in a website report.

"In the past, when I take the bills to the work units to ask them to pay, they acknowledge their bill, tell me they indeed lack money and ask me to wait. But this year, some offices are outright trying to skirt responsibility," Yang said.

"They said they won't accept previous leaders' bills. They tell me to find whoever signed the bill!"

[...snip...]

"This is only the beginning," Yang swore. "I want to use the law to demand payment of all the money owed to me."

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