Ex-official should be punished over vehicle explosion

Zheng Beiquan, a former vice-mayor of Yingde, Qingyuan city, Guangdong province, should receive disciplinary punishment for his responsibility under his leadership for the explosion of a vehicle carrying explosives on Aug 27, 2012, which killed 10 people, said a report.

The public security bureau of Yingde issued approvals contrary to regulations on the management of civil explosives and failed to supervise the sector properly, according to the report issued on March 1 on the investigation of the accident by the provincial work safety administration. Zheng was also former director of the public security bureau.

The explosives were ordered by the mining subsidiary of the Yingde Longshan Cement Co.

The accident resulted from serious breaches of the law and regulations in the operation by the enterprises involved, the report said.

Xie Longsheng, former deputy director of Zheng's bureau, who failed to answer calls for an investigation into the explosion, should also receive disciplinary punishment, the report said.

A number of other government officials and employees of the enterprises involved were also held responsible for the explosion case.

Zheng was put under investigation on suspicion of breaking various laws to help relatives and friends, the Qingyuan Party commission for discipline inspection announced in November last year.

His case first made headlines after Xie Longsheng and Zhu Yingzhong, commissar of Zheng's bureau, reported Zheng's connection to gangsters to government departments in late September.