Photo/Sheutwang

May 7 (NBD) -- Family of Wu Hechen, a member of Chinese renowned crosstalk group De Yun She, initiated a fundraising campaign early this month on Chinese crowdfunding platform Shuidichou to raise as much as 1 million yuan (147,898 U.S. dollars) to cover medical expenses, after Wu was hospitalized for cerebral hemorrhage.

The move soon triggered mounting criticism on Chinese social media platforms, after the public noticed the financial status of Wu who has houses and a car.

The incident soon dragged the crowdfunding platform under public scrutiny over the reviewing mechanism over the initiators who raise money to cover medical bills.

Public wrath aroused 

"Possessing two houses and a car, Wu has health insurance coverage. Why does he need to raise 1 million yuan for cerebral hemorrhage?" some doubted.

In response to criticism, Wu's wife posted a message on Twitter-like app Weibo on Friday, refuting the funding target was set at the ceiling amount on the platform due to her misunderstanding of the fundraising rules. The project received merely 148,184 yuan and had been closed on the same day.

Besides, she emphasized the necessity of crowdfunding for Wu's medical treatment. The two houses were public rental housing and can't be for sale, she explained, adding that the car was also indispensable for daily life.

Shuidichou made an announcement two days later. It stated Wu's wife uploaded the files of diagnosis and medical spending to the platform, and started a fundraising project on May 1.

It contacted the initiator and the related hospital the next morning to verify the documents. Shuidichou requested supplementary files about Wu's financial statements, according to the statement.

The platform is not qualified to conduct investigation on the initiator's car and property, it added.

Shuidichou said it will continue updating the detailed use of proceeds in Wu's treatment.

Fundraising platforms' review system questioned

Since 2014 when China's online crowdfunding sector emerged, the platforms in the field have become the new channel for patients who can't afford medical costs to raise funds.

However, National Business Daily noticed that this is not the first time that the fundraising project went viral on the Internet for alleged accusation of fraud.

In November 2016, a person named Luo Er published an article on social app WeChat, asking for donation for his five-year-old daughter with leukemia. With millions of views, the tips for article reached over 2.62 million yuan. But the author reportedly owned three houses and two cars but spent a mere 30,000 yuan on his daughter's illness.

Holding that seeking for financial aid is a legal right for all Chinese, Yang Tuan, former research of Institute of Sociology at Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, pointed out that considerable risks in such fundraising would possibly be caused by weak supervision.

The online fundraising, as one of Internet help-seeking behaviors, is subject to China's civil law, and the initiator of a campaign releasing false information constitutes a fraud in civil law, Yang added. 

Industry insiders called for effective government regulations and a complete review system of crowdfunding platforms.

With no legal standard for initiators who are allowed to collect funds, the accuracy of disclosures from help seekers directly affects donators' decision, said Shu Rui, commentator of state media China Central Television.

Email: gaohan@nbd.com.cn