Members of the Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) will be sacked if they fail to turn up twice for meetings without prior permission.

That's according to a new regulation from the standing committee of the provincial conference.

Yang Dong, secretary-general of the Guangdong provincial committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, said the rule aims to increase the sense of responsibility among members while flushing out 'dormant' ones.

Ren Jiantao, a public administration professor of Guangzhou-based Sun Yat-sen University, spoke highly of the new regulation.

"Beyond doubt, there are members who only wish for the honour and corresponding privileges as political consultative members rather than wanting an opportunity to participate in the administration and discussion of State affairs," the professor said.

"The new regulation will play an effective role in securing willing advisors and rejecting reluctant ones."

The regulation stipulates that even members of the standing committee of the provincial political consultative conference will be asked to quit if absent from four meetings of the standing committee without advanced application for leave.

"Members are the body of the provincial committee," said Yang. "Only when they are active can they play their advisory roles well."

The local people's political consultative conference is an advisory body to local authorities. Conference members are encouraged to participate in the administration and discussion of State affairs by proposing resolutions and suggestions.

Some of the members are full-time while many others are part-time.

Yang said the provincial committee makes an announcement of a meeting or a social activity at least one week in advance to leave enough time for members, especially those working on a part-time basis, to make arrangements.

He said that the provincial committee told 28 political consultative members to quit including Sun Shuwei and Hu Jia both diving champions in the last Olympic Games and a Hong Kong businessman, in January this year after their failure to propose suggestions or to attend most meetings in the past two years.

The new rule, drafted early in 2005, was passed by the standing committee of the provincial conference in late September.

(China Daily October 10, 2006)