Community response positive; people ask for more chances to raise issues

Lin Shuwen, appearing on live TV, blushed when he watched a short video of an elderly resident complaining about officials under his management.

The reaction of Lin, the Party chief of Hongshan district in Wuhan, Hubei province, was a highlight of a show called Dianshi Wenzheng — or Questioning Officials on TV — which aired this week from Monday to Wednesday.

Lin, one of 12 officials to appear on the first night, was asked to watch a prerecorded segment featuring Huang Julan, a 75-year-old resident in his district, who said she had struggled to obtain a document proving that she lives alone in order to get a subsidy for homebased care.

She said she had made more than 20 visits to various departments over two weeks, but still had not got the document.

“These officials didn’t serve in the right way,” Lin said, addressing a live studio audience of about 200 peo- ple. “Their attitudes are not correct.”

The action quickly switched to Huang watching the show live in her living room, where she responded: “Don’t give me words, show me action. Only then will I be satisfied.”

Dianshi Wenzheng, which gives residents an opportunity to take up complaints with senior officials, started at 8 pm and lasted almost two hours on Wuhan TV. The show is aired once or twice a year and is now in its sixth year — although it was temporarily suspended in 2016 because of local flooding.

Each episode is themed. This week’s installments focused on the working styles of grassroots officials, the treatment of four major water bodies and improvements in the city’s environment.

Hu Jianming, deputy general manager of a property development company who was invited to participate in the program to offer commentary and analysis on Tuesday, said he did not expect it would get so much attention from his relatives and friends.

“I was called by at least five