Sustainable Legitimacy: Chinese Government Inspections and Public Approval of Village Leadership

Abstract

Inspections to villages are an important mechanism for the Chinese government to gain and retain its ruling legitimacy. However, whether inspections have been effectively utilized for that designated purpose of sustainable governance remains less clear. We know very little about how the Chinese government employs inspections to boost its public approval. This study sets out to examine that effect, contending that inspections to Chinese villages significantly boost the public approval of village leaderships by promoting the governing efficacy of village leaders. The consistent practice of inspections results in a sustained level of public support for the Chinese government. This causal relationship between inspections and public approval holds, first, by improving village social welfare and economic development, and second, by securing for village leaders essential political and financial support from higher authorities to better represent villagers' interests and mediate conflicts among villagers. Using data of 961 randomly selected villages across China, the empirical analysis shows that Chinese government inspections significantly boost villagers' approval regarding their village leaders.

Penyelesaian Konflik Antar Keluarga Kandidat Kepala Desa Pasca Pemilihan Kepala Desa Tunggul Bulin Kecamatan Tabir Ilir Kabupaten Merangin Dalam Pendekatan Budaya Tahun 2020

“…Jumlah kasus konflik yang terjadi antara keluarga dan pendukung salah satu calon kepala desa pasca pemilihan kepala desa di Desa Tunggul Bulin Tahun 2020 dapat dilihat pada tebel berikut: Berdasarkan dari fenomena konflik yang terjadi di tengah-tengah masyarakat desa Tunggul Bulin di Kecamatan Tabir Ilir pasca pemilihan kepala desa sangat bertolak belakang dengan apa yang menjadi karakter masyarakat setempat. Dalam hal ini, jika dilihat dari sejarah masyarakat Tunggul Bulin pada umumnya yang menjunjung tinggi nilai kearifan lokal dengan menjaga keharmonisan dan keamanan dalam segala aspek kehidupan, terlebih lagi dalam menentukan pemimpin atau kepala desa (Bawono et al, 2019;Kridasakti et al, 2022;Saputra et al, 2019;Xi, 2018).…”

Sustainable Practicalities towards Good Governance in Fish Townships and Villages by Ethics-Based Approach

“…Autonomy of small communities presents a benevolent way for human beings to accumulate social capital for moral good [38]. Fish townships and villages constitute vast small social communities, and their self-governance is a socio-ecological screen that shall not be circumvented by state administration before its obtaining of legitimacy [39]. With economic development and division of labor, there are many stakeholders and value demands within fish communities, and the subject consciousness and right awareness of all participants (especially small-scale fishermen and farmers at grassroots) are constantly boosted.…”

Sustainable Rural Governance: How Rural Elections in China Lead to Long-Term Social Stability?

“…While the Chinese government's top-down mechanisms, such as government inspections, prove to be effective in sustaining its ruling legitimacy [3], such top-down administrative actions are not sustainable means in the long term to ensure an efficient form of governance. Bottom-up self-governance in rural China, on the other hand, provides the essential mechanisms for sustainable governance.…”