Residents of Fuliang County, Jingdezhen City, Jiangxi Province recently revealed that the second phase of the purported 60 billion yuan investment Qing 5G Digital Economic Industrial Park (hereinafter referred to as the Qing Industrial Park) in the county has come to a standstill. Not only are there reports of migrant worker wages being unpaid, but there are also disputes over land ownership.
According to the whistleblower, in recent years in Fuliang County, the Qing Industrial Park is well-known as it has been extensively covered by major media outlets for its construction progress. Government officials at all levels have conducted research and visits to the industrial park multiple times.
The official Chinese media, “Science and Technology Daily,” boasted in January of this year: “From the start of construction to the trial operation of the production line, how much time is needed? The answer provided by the Jingdezhen Fuliang County (Government) for the key project, the Qing 5G Digital Industrial Park, with a 60-billion-yuan investment, is 99 days.”
The Fuliang County government’s official WeChat account, “Xinping Express,” has also promoted: “The project of the Qing 5G Digital Economic Industrial Park with a 60 billion yuan investment is one of the ’50’ projects introduced in our county… Since the contract was signed in August 2021 and construction started in September, all parties involved have been working two days in one, taking two steps with three steps, implementing a 24-hour construction system, and showcasing the ‘100-day battle’ of project construction at a new ‘Fuliang speed.'”
However, to the surprise of Fuliang residents, the Qing Industrial Park did not show rapid development thereafter. The park lacks the bustling scenes of production, and the construction of its second phase came to a complete halt before completion.
The whistleblower expressed confusion: “I have heard that there are land ownership disputes in the first phase of the Qing Industrial Park. Additionally, significant wages are owed to migrant workers for the second phase of construction. How is it possible for a government-invested project of 60 billion yuan to be behind on paying workers? Where did all that money go?”
On October 31st, journalists from Zhi Jian News visited the Qing Industrial Park in Fuliang County. While the main entrance and the main building of the first phase were indeed impressive, the park and the building appeared deserted. Inside a construction site adjacent to the main building of the first phase, several buildings had completed their primary construction but had been idle for many days. Apart from one security guard, no workers were seen on the site, and many pieces of machinery remained unused for a long time. Mr. Yuan, responsible for overseeing the site, disclosed that construction had not resumed since 2024 due to wage arrears, and workers were demanding payment.
A person named He, in charge of the Qing Industrial Park, mentioned that the labor department of Fuliang County had inquired about the issue of unpaid wages to migrant workers before. However, the land acquisition, construction, and decoration of the entire industrial park were not handled by the Qing Group. They were merely brought in by the government for investment, paying only rent. Therefore, the owed wages to the workers were not related to the Qing Industrial Park.
In addition to the unpaid wages issue, the land used for the construction of the Qing Industrial Park also faces severe disputes. Within the construction land of the industrial park, there are two parcels totaling 118.65 mu owned by Jiangxi Jiarui Real Estate Co., Ltd. Since 2014, the company has obtained these lands through public online auctions at a rate of 380,000 yuan per mu and have acquired real estate certificates.
However, without consultation with Jiarui Real Estate or completing the transfer procedures, the Fuliang County government began construction directly on these lands. A person in charge of Jiarui Real Estate expressed, “This is akin to a neighbor building a house on our residential land!”
The head of the Fuliang County Land Reserve Center acknowledged in a media interview that indeed construction had commenced on the land where Jiarui Real Estate held real estate certificates without formally transferring ownership.
Following the exposure of the above information by the media, it sparked discussions among the public.
Fashion Tomato Sir: These industrial parks are found everywhere in the country. Some industrial parks sound very tech-savvy, but in reality, they house low-end industries like wood processing plants and stonemasonry. The only slightly tech-related operation there might be assembling headphones.
Comfort Cat Barista: This situation is prevalent everywhere now. Very few factory units have actually been rented out. Previously, this area was filled with corrugated iron buildings, all of which were rented out. Now, with the new four-story buildings, there are vacant lots everywhere with no takers. It was no issue having corrugated iron buildings before, but these new constructions are so clean that there’s simply no way to utilize them.
Accompany_You_To_Wander: Jingdezhen is tough. Many porcelain businesses have closed down in the past three months, and many skilled artisans have switched professions.
Happy and Jolly Carly: These incidents are rampant in Jiangxi. Just dig a little, and you’ll find them in almost every place. It’s not surprising at all.
User7441532024: Filling one’s pockets is the priority; abandoning projects is no longer a concern for them!
Mountain Pass Yell a Little Loud: Another invalid local debt situation. How are they going to address these issues?
Forceful Caterpillar: Out of the 60 billion yuan, probably 58 billion went into certain people’s pockets.
Laughing Wild Beast: Money is not a problem here! Stop investigating further; even if the truth is revealed, it’s already too late. The money must have been shifted to somewhere else long before. Plan how to fail before investing, have a target already in mind. There’s no chance of recovery now.