County Party school halts KTV after opulence claims

A KTV business that operated out of a building owned by a Party school in a poverty-stricken county in Shaanxi province has had its lease revoked after Net users criticized it for its opulence, according to a report in people.com.cn.

The Party school of Liuba county decided to end the contract after Net users posted pictures of the luxury KTV rooms in the school on Tuesday.

A staff member of the school confirmed to the Global Times Wednesday that the school has shut down the KTV business.

The publicity office of Liuba county in Hanzhong confirmed to people.com.cn the existence of three luxury KTV rooms in the Party school on Tuesday, saying the rooms were rented to a private contractor who operated a resort with theme "rural life."

This resort is separate from the office building and has appropriate licensing, the report said, adding that it is 1.5 kilometers away from a busy area, in a place without many residents. Its business hours start at 8:00 pm when the Party school is closed.

Liuba is a poverty-stricken county. To make full use of local assets, its county Party committee rented some of its properties to private enterprises in May 2012.

In April 2007, Chinese central authorities issued regulations demanding that local governments and Party committees should be transparent about the use of official buildings. In July this year, central authorities issued a notice stating that local authorities should take back official buildings when contracts expire.