Key watchdog vows to advance anti-graft fight

Cracking down on collusion between officials, businesspeople to be prioritized

The top disciplinary watchdog of the Communist Party of China will prioritize the investigation of corruption cases involving collusion between officials and businesspeople, according to a communique issued on Wednesday.

The disciplinary authorities will continue to resolutely fight corruption related to finance, State-owned enterprises, energy, tobacco, health and infrastructure projects, it said.

The 20th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection adopted the communique at its third plenary session, which was held in Beijing from Monday to Wednesday.

Xi Jinping, general secretary of the CPC Central Committee, Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, attended the plenary session and delivered an important speech.

The session reviewed disciplinary inspection work in 2023, arranged tasks for 2024 and approved a work report delivered by Li Xi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and head of the CCDI.

The communique highlighted the need to deepen the anti-graft campaign and called for comprehensively advancing the approach of ensuring that Party members and officials do not dare to, are unable to, and have no desire to indulge in corruption.

The CCDI will focus on key issues, areas and targets, as well as new types of corruption and hidden ones, the communique said. Corruption affecting the daily life of people and cross-border graft cases will be resolutely addressed, it said.

Cracking down on collusion between officials and businesspeople has always been high on the agenda of the country's anti-corruption campaign.

In a recent case exposed by the CCDI, Chen Jixing, 69, a former vice-chairman of the Standing Committee of the Guangdong Provincial People's Congress, was expelled from the Party and transferred to face charges.

Chen colluded with businesspeople over a long period of time and engaged in trading power for money, according to the CCDI. Misusing his position and power, Chen helped others with project development, loan approval and other issues, in return for a huge amount of property. He continued to take part in such illegal acts even after retiring in 2018.

Disciplinary authorities will promote institutional reforms in key areas, strengthen the joint investigation of bribe-giving and bribe-taking, and improve the joint punishment mechanism for key bribe givers.

More efforts will be made to investigate and unearth clues related to audits, and to improve anti-corruption legislation at the national level.

The communique noted that disciplinary authorities will launch special campaigns to crack down on irregular practices of officials participating in or organizing banquets. Formalism and bureaucratism, which have drawn strong criticism from officials and the public, will be eradicated.

The communique also emphasized the need to deepen reforms of the disciplinary inspection and supervision system and to improve disciplinary regulations.

Internal Party supervision will be further improved, the communique said, adding that the CCDI will intensify the supervision of top leaders and the leadership teams, which are vested with enormous powers.

yangzekun@chinadaily.com.cn