Officials in charge of a milk processing plant in Onsong County, North Hamgyong Province, have been punished for “irresponsibility” in efforts to implement party policy.
The factory in question produces nutritional food products for children.
A source in North Hamgyong Province told Daily NK on Monday that the provincial party committee sacked and exiled the primary party organization secretary and manager of the plant for failing to carry out government policy to provide soymilk to children, accusing them of complacency and incompetence.
A regional industrial plant under the jurisdiction of Onsong County’s people’s committee, Onsong Milk Processing Plant has been subject to general review since the Second Conference of Secretaries of Primary Committees. It reportedly came under fire for providing milk to schools in downtown Onsong only about twice a month.
According to the source, the provincial party committee faulted the primary party organization secretary and manager of the factory for lazy production based on claims that they suffered from electricity and supply shortages. The committee said the duo regarded their lackadaisical attitude as “natural,” and accused them of the “serious crime” of “using” tougher economic circumstances due to COVID-19 to excuse their laziness.
In fact, the committee slammed the factory officials for completely forfeiting their qualifications as leaders with their irresponsibility, noting that party policy to provide milk to children remains unchanged, no matter how difficult times may be.
The committee said the factory got its earmarked supplies in winter, and the officials could have resolved their problems if they had just ran around a bit to get electricity. If they lacked trucks to distribute their milk, they could have mobilized school parents to move their product. Instead, they did little but lethargically complain about the circumstances.
The source said the provincial party committee — already well aware of the situation — was so outraged that it wanted to disband the factory’s primary party organization. Instead, however, the committee sent officials to the factory to ascertain the problems it faced, trying to be magnanimous. However, the majority opinion in the committee was that the factory officials had crossed the line.
The source said the factory’s primary party organization secretary and manager were sacked and sentenced to exile in the countryside as loggers “to make examples of them.”
The provincial party committee reportedly plans to inspect all local milk factories and food processing plants to determine if any suffer from similar problems.
The committee is reportedly using the incident to generate a climate of fear, declaring it will crush “complacency, self-protectionism, and irresponsibility” on the part of officials.
