One Philanthropist is under fire for his high-profile method of giving to the poor

Chen Guangbiao grew up in poverty but later made millions with his recycling company. He has vowed to give away all his 545-million-euro fortune. [Provided to China Daily]

Billionaires in China normally keep a low profile but Chen Guangbiao is an exception to the rule. With his soft southern accent, Chen goes out of his way to speak to the media about his faith in philanthropy and urges everyone to follow his lead.

Many have followed his example but many others find his behavior lacking in humility.

For years, Chinese netizens have been calling him the nation's "top show-off" because of his high media exposure and before Spring Festival this chorus of disapproval reached fever pitch when he conducted a charitable tour to Taiwan.

Chen, 42, the chairman of a recycling company in Jiangsu province, has donated more than 1.4 billion yuan (154 million euros) to charity projects and promised that he would donate his entire fortune to charity after he dies. His property is estimated to be about 5 billion yuan.

Together with more than 50 Chinese mainland entrepreneurs, Chen brought NT$500 million (12 million euros) to Taiwan and personally distributed cash to the poor. He made sure the media was in tow.

Despite his generosity many Taiwan people did not appreciate the high-profile manner of his giving and his actions have made him the center of criticism on both sides of the Straits.

Some media in Taiwan have questioned Chen's motives and say they might be political. Others say he was dishonoring the poverty stricken people of Taiwan.

Before Chen went to Taiwan, he conducted a telephone interview with Taiwan's TVBS.

During the interview the host, Chen Wenhui, shouted to Chen: "People are not happy with you coming here. Why are you coming?"

On Jan 25, the day before Chen went to Taiwan, the island's mainland affairs chief Lai Shin-yuan said Taiwan authorities would not object to Chen's charitable activities, but the dignity of the recipients should be considered.

"The aim of the trip was to thank the Taiwan people for their help when the Chinese mainland suffered from natural disasters and also to give some warm relief to the needy before the Spring Festival," Chen says.

In the past, about half of Chen's donations were given to poverty-stricken people or those who lived in disaster-hit areas.

Chen says one of the reasons he gives so openly was because he felt that many Chinese charity organizations were not transparent enough.

"I have experienced that and I do not know where my donation had gone," he says.

But his method of giving has been refused by some regional governments in Taiwan, such as Taoyuan and New Taipei city, because his actions "hindered public order and he gave "an inelegant view".

Because of the strong opposition, Chen was only able to hand out about NT$100 million in cash to the recipients directly and left the rest to the Taiwan charities.

"I will coordinate with those charities and press them to publish where the money will be spent," Chen says.

Although he has been continually bombarded with criticism, Chen insists on his high-profile style.

He continues to court the media and sent "thank you" cards to reporters after they interviewed him in Taiwan.

"The honor is not the reason I do charity, but I believe that doing good should be recognized," Chen says.

"Through the media reports, my deeds have encouraged and affected many people, both entrepreneurs and ordinary, to do more for the charity."

He says he received many thousands of e-mails, phone calls and letters from people who have been encouraged by him and promise to follow his charitable lead.

The Ministry of Civil Affairs has twice recognized Chen (in 2008 and 2010) as China's top philanthropist.

In September last year, he announced through his company website that he would give away all his wealth to charitable causes after his death in response to billionaires Bill Gates and Warren Buffett's charity dinner invitation in Beijing.

Chen's life is a true rags-to-riches story, and filled with great tragedy.

He was born into a farmer's family in Anhui province and spent his childhood in poverty.

Both his older brother and sister died from malnutrition when he was a toddler.

Since he was 10, he had to earn his own school fees.

Because many rural areas in China did not have tap water in the 1970s, Chen was forced to carry water to the local market 2 km away and sold to passers-by everyday in that summer.

He says his harsh childhood experiences did not make him mean spirited, but instead filled him with compassion for others.

"I know how precious sunshine is for the one in severe winter," he says.

During one summer holiday he remembers earning 4 yuan (0.44 euros), which not only paid his own annual tuition but also helped one of his classmates.

"That was my first donation and my teacher awarded me a red paper flower for it in class," Chen recalls.

"The honor and the feeling of giving made me so happy, which encouraged me to continue to help others."

At age 11, Chen began selling ice-sweets and helped to carry grains to town from his village the year after. By the time he was 14, he had already saved more than 10,000 yuan.

After school he majored in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) at college, and began making his fortune selling medical equipment in 1997.

In the process of becoming an entrepreneur, he did not lose his benevolent and generous spirit.

In his first year of selling equipment, Chen earned 20,000 yuan and gave 3,000 yuan to a 13-year-old girl named Zhu Lili, who suffered from heart disease. She was too poor to pay for treatment.

Zhu was just one of more than 700,000 people whose lives have changed with Chen's help.

During the 2003 Spring Festival, his father asked him: "I know you have donated millions of yuan to society but China has so many poor people and don't you think that your money is like a drop of water to desert?"

Chen realized he needed to influence more people to give to charity rather than doing it alone silently.

Since then, he turned into a 'nasty' attention seeker.

"I do not mind being called the 'top show-off' at all," he says.

"I want to spearhead the change in philanthropy value of Chinese and the aim of my high-profile is to spur even push more to join the charity work."