Peking U denies it offers exclusive seminars

Peking University denied claims by a Chinese property tycoon that it was offering expensive and exclusive training courses for high-level government and business leaders, People's Daily's website people.com.cn reported Tuesday.

Authorities from the university, one of China's top academic institutions, said in an interview that there are no such courses being offered, said the report.

Ren Zhiqiang, chairman of Hua Yuan Real Estate Group, said he received a message on his mobile phone inviting him to join the course via his account on Sina Weibo, a Twitter-like social networking website, on Tuesday morning.

The message said the two-year course, launched by the Organization Department of the Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, was open to senior officials and top executives of large enterprises, and the tuition fee was 798,000 yuan ($130,153).

In response to Ren's message, Weibo user Xian Yu DEdream said, "Many commercial organizations run such training under the name of governments. The stuff is all a lie." Weibo user Zhang Haijun said, "The old trick rolls again. I received such deceptive text messages five years ago."

A search of "courses for party and government officials at Peking University" online resulted in many related items, but none of the information was published by Peking University's official website, said the report.