Beijing criticised over Tiananmen Square's psychedelic-style vase costing 570,000 yuan
Giant vase installed in square prompts scathing criticism online
A giant vase installed in Beijing’s Tiananmen Square ahead of a national holiday has met with scathing criticism from Chinese internet users after a newspaper revealed its cost on Sunday.
An enormous psychedelic-looking red pot topped with huge fake flowers and imitation peaches was installed this week on the square, the symbolic centre of the Chinese state.
But it came at a cost of more than 570,000 yuan (HK$718,000) up 8,000 yuan from the previous two years, according to the state-run Beijing Youth Daily.
The cost prompted critical comments among Chinese internet users - even though the report said that the overall number of flowers used around Beijing for China’s National Day had halved.
“Who permitted spending taxpayer’s money in this way?” one user of Sina Weibo, a Chinese equivalent of Twitter, wrote.
Another user wrote: “570,000! That money could be put to much better use.”
