A system to improve the performance and image of chengguan, the nation's much-maligned urban management officers, is being rolled out across Beijing.

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The program, which is an integral part of the municipality's 12th Five-Year Plan (2011-2015), basically involves supervisors scouring the streets with cameras looking for problems, such as illegal construction.

The supervisors, who answer directly to district authority chiefs, will use the photographs to alert related bureaus, while chengguan, who are responsible for enforcement, are given two days to resolve the issue.

"The handling of problems will directly affect annual evaluations of urban management officers," said a chengguan in Chaoyang district who asked to be referred to only as Tong.

It is hoped that the system, which has run in Dongcheng district since 2007, will lead to better coordination among government departments. As well as being in six downtown districts, the program will be rolled out in all 10 suburban districts and counties in the next five years.

The system is also expected to boost the long-held negative image of chengguan, which has come following numerous allegations of brutal and coercive measures in policy enforcement. One recent example is a video popular on the Internet that appears to show two chengguan attempting to confiscate goods from a street vendor surnamed Cui in Tongzhou district in May last year. A 9-year-old girl's hand was allegedly injured in the fracas.

"Building the image of chengguan lies in the renewal of civilized enforcement, as well as the innovation of measures," Chen Yong, a director with environment commission told Beijing Times.

The Times also carried a report that Beijing is expected to establish a public information service system with resources shared between various urban management institutions to improve efficiency and safety.

China Daily