The Chinese billionaire who wants to treat hundreds of homeless to a posh meal at the Central Park Boathouse is planning to do it with an army of waiters — a Red Army.
Eccentric recycling kingpin Chen Guangbiao aims to have servers dressed in 150 People’s Liberation Army uniforms as he hosts a crowd of New York vagrants next week, the Xinhua News Agency reported.
Each outfit will be stitched with the words “serve the people,” and tailored in a dour Maoist 1960s style, the report said.
About 100 of the outfits will match the attire of Chen’s hero, People’s Army solider Lei Feng — a symbol of Chinese selflessness in much-disputed Communist propaganda. The others will resemble modern-day Army duds.
More lunch details were unclear as Chen and the participating New York City Rescue Mission homeless shelter offered conflicting reports.
While the Mission said its vagrants will get $300 in supplies from Chen only after completing an addiction program, Chen says he will just give each lunch guest $300 cash.
Chen also said that he will take 1,000 people to his three-course lunch Wednesday. But the Mission said he’ll be hosting four 250-person lunches over an unspecified time.
While Chen said servers will be unpaid volunteers, the Mission said they will be the regular Loeb Boathouse wait staff.
Chen told reporters he was hosting the event “to spread the message . . . that there are good philanthropists in China and not all are crazy spenders on luxury goods.”
Chen also said he’ll be accompanied by a female Chinese celebrity who’ll co-host the bash . But he wouldn’t disclose her name.
Additional reporting by David K Li.