Officials investigated by anti-graft body

Four senior Party and government officials from the Baiyun district of Guangzhou, Guangdong province, have been transferred to judicial departments for further investigation of suspected serious violations of Party discipline and State laws, according to the city's top anti-graft body on Monday.

The deputy prefecture-level officials who were sacked recently include Gu Wenyao, former Party chief of Baiyun district, executive vice-district head Zhong Xiangdong and Liu Jiansheng, a member of the Party committee of the district.

They were also investigated for serious economic problems, said Mei Heqing, a senior official from the Guangzhou Party Commission of Discipline Inspection, at a press conference on Monday afternoon.

Mei did not reveal details about the cases as investigations are ongoing.

"Eighty-one Party and government officials from Baiyun district have been investigated so far," he said.

In addition to the four officials, the district has investigated another 19 county-level, 15 township-level and 43 village officials, including 15 non-Party members, Mei said.

"The investigation of the officials showed the city's top anti-graft body's determination to fight corruption and investigate both major and minor cases," Mei added.

Mei said the city's anti-graft body investigated 73 county-level officials in the first six months of this year.

Qi Fanke, political commissar of the Yuexiu district branch of the Guangzhou Bureau of Public Security, was recently dismissed from his post for further investigation for acting as a "protective umbrella" for local entertainment venues.

Qi is suspected of accepting bribes to help cover up illegal activities by local entertainment venues, Mei said.

Early this year, Guo Qinghe, a former deputy mayor of Conghua, a suburb of Guangzhou, Xie Xuening, director of the Guangzhou Bureau of Science and Information, and Liu Yantang, deputy director of the Guangzhou Administration of Forestry and Gardening, were put under shuanggui, a procedure in which Party and government officials are asked to confess their wrongdoing at a stipulated time and place.

Zheng Fenming, director of the institute of modernization strategy at the Guangdong Academy of Social Sciences, said the investigation of corrupt officials is a remedial measure.

"Government departments at all levels should try to prevent the centralization of power by senior officials to help keep corruption in check," Zheng told China Daily on Monday.

He urged government departments to cede more power on administrative approval and examination, and enable more supervision from society.

"Some officials, particularly top officials, have too much power to examine and approve projects and other affairs that could easily lead to corruption," he said.

Transparent and effective democratic supervision should be established to monitor the operation of government departments, said Zheng, who is also a member of the Guangdong Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference.

"Fighting corruption cannot rely only on inspections by the Party commissions of discipline," he said.

"Deputies of People's Congress, members of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and even common residents should have more channels to supervise the operation of government departments and report corruption cases."

Wang Chenfeng, an office worker in Guangzhou's Baiyun district, said corruption has become very serious when such a large number of Party and government officials are being investigated in the district.

"Concrete and effective measures should be introduced to prevent and fight corruption in the following months, or the government will fail to win support from residents," he said.

zhengcaixiong@chinadaily.com.cn