China is now going through social transformation and the general public is expecting a responsible, efficient, uncorrupted and responsive government. In government public management and public service, administrative accountability system has become an important step in the feedback and deviation ratification mechanism of administrative deviation or nonperformance. Analyzed from the theories and the practices of various nations in the world, the scope of administrative accountability includes not only administrative accountability authorized by the administrative organs to the administrative cadres, but also administrative accountability authorized by the people to the governments and officials with the latter one as the key of the administrative accountability system. In China, the administrative accountability authorized by the administrative organs to the administrative cadres in the internal part of the administrative system is the mainstay, resulting in various practical problems such as imperfection of accountability procedures and excessive scope for administrative discretion, etc., which cannot be avoided or solved by itself unless with supplement of administrative accountability authorized by the people to the governments and officials.The article selects administrative accountability authorized by the people to the governments and officials as the research subject, concludes its connotations, extensions, legal basis and composition, analyzes the status quo and the corresponding disadvantages of the accountability in China so as to conclude the institution demand of the accountability and explore the macro environment of accountability from two aspects, flexible conditions and rigid requirements of the accountability. Conduct in-depth comparisons and analyses of the practices of administrative accountability authorized by the people to the governments and officials in China with some foreign nations such as the U.S., UK and France concerning the key components of the accountability. On the basis of the mainstay and operating mechanism of the accountability, detect common factors and differences by comparison, conclude experience and inspirations and explore by integrating the actual national situations in China, the accountability mechanism and measures to the Communist Party in China, the National People's Congress, democratic parties, news media and general public with the view to providing rewarding references to the imperfection of the theories and effectiveness in practice of administrative accountability in China. |