Watchdogs to be deployed in all top central govt bodies

The anti-corruption museum in Liaoning province is the largest one of its kind in China and is free of charge. Pan Yulong/Xinhua

Supervision officers are to be deployed at all central Party and government organizations to intensify the campaign against corruption, a senior official at the top anti-graft watchdog said on Wednesday.

Inspection teams have so far been sent to 52 central bodies by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China.

However, the deployment will now be extended to cover all such bodies, and this will involve teams being based permanently at an additional 80 organizations.

"Deploying supervision teams to all central Party and government bodies will enhance regular supervisory capacity and help prevent and curb corruption at its root," Chen Wenqing, deputy secretary of the CCDI, said in an online interview on the commission's website.

As a first step, inspectors will be sent to seven government and Party bodies including the CPC Central Committee's General Office, Organization Department, Publicity Department and United Front Work Department, Chen said.

The National People's Congress, the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference and the General Office of the State Council are also on the list.

Chen said that, in line with the CPC Constitution, all members and organizations should receive supervision from the Party and the public.

"The central Party and government authorities are organs of supreme power and the main centers of the country's system of governance, and as such require additional supervision from the discipline authorities," he added. Chen said supervision will be tightened further, but declined to give details.

The latest high-profile case involves Ling Jihua, former head of the United Front Work Department. He is under investigation for "suspected serious disciplinary violations", the CCDI said on Monday.

On Dec 5, the Central Committee's Political Bureau announced that Zhou Yongkang, a former senior CPC official, had been arrested and expelled from the Party.

Pi Yijun, a law professor at the China University of Political Science and Law, said the extension of supervision to all central Party and government bodies shows that the central government is adopting a zero-tolerance attitude toward corruption.

"The new measures will minimize the risk of corruption and prevent major cases occurring in the future," he added.

Contact the writer at zhangyan1@chinadaily.com.cn