National

Regional

Taiwan, HK, Macao

Special Coverage

Focus

Society

Profiles

Bugle call sounded for PLA to combat graft among top brass

By Cui Xiaohuo (China Daily)
Updated: 2009-05-18 07:39

Top military brass have been told that "no luxury or hedonism will be tolerated" - the warning issued by the Central Military Commission (CMC) less than a year after a five-year anti-corruption campaign was launched last October.

Military insiders told China Daily the directive, issued over the weekend, is a strong signal to senior officers to stop extravagant spending by some.

Corruption in the People's Liberation Army (PLA) has rarely been revealed; and the last time a case was made public was when 66-year-old Wang Shouye was expelled as the deputy commander of the Chinese Navy in June 2006 for abusing power and taking bribes.

Related readings:  China honors outstanding military staff  China's military modernization 'no threat'  China to hold massive military drill in second half of 2009  Hu stresses improvement of military officers' work  Wen: Corruption still serious problem in some areas

The CMC also urged senior and mid-level PLA officers to recognize the "extreme importance" of proper conduct and discipline.

The notice also said the crackdown on corruption will be intensified, and neglect of duty or violations of army regulations will be strictly dealt with.

The PLA set up an audit office in 1985 which reports to the CMC, but no audit results have been released.

The total number of senior officers in the PLA is believed to exceed 50,000.

Experts said openness on army corruption remains "extremely limited".

Army corruption is mainly caused by a relatively weak prevention network as well as the lack of third-party supervision, said Professor Mao Shoulong, a public administration researcher at Renmin University of China.

"The public impression is that some army officers have lavish lifestyles and drive around in luxury vehicles," Mao said. "There must have been some who have been caught and punished, but their cases have not been made public. Only by releasing audit results will the fight against corruption be strengthened."