Qin Yu, head of Baoshan District, is being investigated for alleged misuse of public funds, according to the Shanghai Municipal Discipline Inspection Commission.

Qin is the second senior city official under investigation after Zhu Junyi, director of the Shanghai Municipal Labour and Social Security Bureau, was reportedly found to have misappropriated 3.2 billion yuan (US$400 million) in public funds.

Qin was elected head of Baoshan District on July 25 after serving as deputy director of the general office of the Shanghai municipal government and secretary to the Shanghai mayor, according to Caijing Magazine.

Qin's photo and other information about him has been removed from the Baoshan District government website.

An investigation team of more than 100 people from Beijing has reportedly arrived in Shanghai to probe corruption cases involving pension funds.

Three top officials from the Shanghai Electric Group, China's largest power gear manufacturer, have resigned after an investigation into the misuse of pension funds, according to an announcement on the company's website.

But the firm said in a recent statement that the investigation had not affected its operations.

Zhang Rongkun, chairman of Fuxi Investment Holding Co, is also under investigation for alleged involvement in pension fund misappropriation.

Zhang owned an 8.15 per cent share in the Hong-Kong listed Shanghai Electric Group.

Zhang was listed as China's 16th richest man by Forbes magazine in 2005, with an estimated fortune of 4.9 billion yuan (US$612 million).

On August 18, Chen Liangyu, secretary of the Shanghai municipal committee of the Communist Party of China, called on government officials to combat corruption and honestly perform their duties.

He also warned that government officials should be accountable and observe the code of conduct.

Shanghai reported 1,499 commercial bribery cases involving more than 200 million yuan (US$25 million) from January 2001 to April 2006. Seventy-four cases involved government officials, according to local media.

In another development, the Standing Committee of the Provincial People's Congress of Anhui Province dismissed He Minxu from his post as vice-governor on Friday.

A brief statement from the congress gave no reason for his sacking.

He, 51, had been questioned on suspicion of accepting bribes by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the CPC's anti-corruption body, according to a report in the Guangzhou-based 21st Century Business Herald in July.

But the report was not confirmed by other sources.

He was previously secretary of the CPC committee of Lishui city, Zhejiang Province and Chizhou city of Anhui.

He was appointed vice-governor of Anhui in June 2005.

(China Daily 08/26/2006 page1)