Li Xi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee and secretary of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, speaks at a conference on national disciplinary inspection work and the 20th CPC Central Committee's first round of inspection in Beijing on March 27, 2023.Photo: Xinhua

Three more officials from the discipline inspection system were placed under investigation on Thursday, bringing the total number of high-level officials from China's discipline inspection system under investigation to 15 in nine days, according to the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China (CCDI) on Thursday.

Among the officials under investigation, Liu Xiangyu, secretary of the Disciplinary Committee of Jilin Provincial Water Affairs Investment Group Co., is suspected of serious violations of discipline and laws.

Liu Zhi, executive vice president of the Red Cross Society of Harbin, Northeast China's Heilongjiang Province, is suspected of serious violations of discipline and laws and is currently under disciplinary and supervision investigation. Liu Zhi once served as deputy secretary of the Harbin Discipline Inspection Commission and deputy director of the Harbin Municipal Supervision Commission.

Chen Gang, former member of the Party Committee of the Guizhou Provincial Public Security Department, is suspected of serious violations of discipline and laws, and is currently being subjected to a disciplinary and supervision investigation by the Guizhou Provincial Discipline Inspection and Supervision Committee.

In nine days, the website of the CCDI reported that a total of 15 discipline inspection officials, including those from South China's Hainan Province, North China's Shandong Province as well as North China's Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region, were under investigation.

China dealt with more than 36,000 corruption-related cases impacting the public interest in the first half of 2023, with more than 52,000 individuals receiving criticism, education, assistance, or punishment, China's highest supervisory and anti-corruption authority announced earlier. 

Discipline inspection and supervisory authorities at all levels have consistently strengthened their inspection covering the implementation of policies supporting the public interest while punishing acts of embezzlement, misappropriation, false reporting and extortion, according to the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the National Commission of Supervision.

The education and rectification of the national discipline inspection and supervision official team is also underway. In the first half of 2023, the national discipline inspection and supervision system received a total of more than 20,200 tips or public reports involving discipline inspection and supervision officials.

In addition, more than 18,700 tips related to discipline inspection and supervision officials were handled, with 2,482 officials subject to disciplinary reports, 1,647 punished, and 73 transferred to judicial organs.

Zhuang Deshui, deputy director of the Research Center for Government Integrity Building at Peking University, told the Global Times that it is urgent to stipulate the operation system, work responsibilities and mechanism of the discipline inspection commissions of the Party and State institutions.

All departments of the central and state organs need to improve the system of discipline inspection in accordance with actual conditions, promote Party organizations and Party members to strictly implement, and strengthen awareness of taking the initiative to carry out supervision and consciously accepting supervision, Zhuang said.