China Ramps up Anti-Corruption Efforts
Tangible Effects
In the latest round of anti-graft combat, Chinese leaders have shown their resolve to leave no stone unturned and not to succumb to so-called established norms. Hundreds of department director generals were investigated and punished, and 50-plus “tigers” were enmeshed, including three state leaders, seven members or alternate members of the CPC Central Committee and one member of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. It was the first time in the PRC’s history that an official as senior as Yang Jinshan, deputy commander of the Chengdu Military Area Command of the People’s Liberation Army of China, was expelled from the Party on corruption charges.
Meanwhile, Beijing is targeting officials of minor rank that embezzle huge sums of public funds. In neighboring Tianjin, appointments of 80 officials were mulled over and annulled. In Hainan Province 25 heads of county-level and above government sectors were brought to book. All these indicate an all-out war on corruption across China.
China is also cleansing its government of extravagance and misdemeanors by public servants. In 2013 alone, more than 180,000 CPC members and officials were investigated and disciplined. By the opening of the Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, the fleet of government motor vehicles nationwide had been slashed by 114,000 cars; 162,000 phantom employees were caught and kicked out of governments at various levels; 100,000 or more public servants handed in cash gifts or prepaid cards whose value totaled RMB 520 million; and 2,550 venal officials were probed and penalized, bribes they had pocketed amounting to RMB 250 million.
In tandem with accelerated efforts to fight corruption at home, China has intensified efforts to extradite fugitive officials abroad. Earlier this year the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Ministry of Supervision jointly established a bureau for international cooperation to hound venal officials at large in other countries. By October 10, 128 suspects had been caught abroad. During the period from the start of 2012 to June 2014, 28 suspects of post-related crimes were arrested and repatriated. The anti-graft storm is also weighing down on public institutions and state-owned enterprises. High-profile cases involving these include China Resources Chairman Song Lin and Executive Vice President of the Chinese Academy of Governance He Jiacheng.
It is evident that preliminary achievements have been made in China’s anti-graft campaign, but the situation remains grim. The root causes of the “four undesirable work styles,” namely formalism, bureaucracy, hedonism and extravagance, are not yet eradicated, for certain leaders lack the courage, will or means to tackle relevant issues. So we have to be aware of potential setbacks, and guard against backsliding. The underlying reason for the spread of corruption is loopholes in a country’s political and economic systems. The war against corruption is, in essence, the pursuit of good values, and denotes the country’s design of its reforms, the path of transition of its society and the direction of its future development. Deepening reforms is essential to deterring and castigating corruption, and tackling the problem through legal means is the only choice.
Rule of Law
The Fourth Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee, centered on the rule of law, betokened that establishing an anti-corruption system on the basis of law, and strengthening the supervision and checks of the use of power will soon move up the agenda of the central authorities. To fight corruption pursuant to the law is actually to bring the administration of power in line with the law, or metaphorically, contain power in the cage of systematic checks.
For this goal there should be the punitive, preventive and supportive systems in place, and more work has to be done in four specific realms. The first is to clarify the boundaries of public power according to the law, eliminate red tape and decentralize power to local governments. The axiom that the government cannot take any action not explicitly allowed by the law must be honored. The administration of power, therefore, is strictly on the same track as the law.
The second is to regulate the means, pattern and process of how officeholders administer their power via legal procedures, demanding transparency of information concerning their decision-making, ensuring the participation of the public and preventing power rent-seeking.
The third is to improve the supervisory mechanism. Any power free of supervision is a menace to public interests. There must be a system overseeing public power and its executors, constricting the “grey area” that allows for corrupt activities.
The fourth is an accountability system that is initiated and improved by making new laws or amending existing ones. It is a necessary deterrent to both inaction and arbitrary actions by officials.
German philosopher George Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel maintained that corruption is not accidental or simply the result of abuse of power. It cannot be terminated by curbing greed, as it has its roots in institutions. In the case of China, establishing various institutions cannot itself solve the problem of corruption once and for all. What’s more important is to foster coordination and cooperation among political, administrative and social systems. Several missions are needed in this regard. The first is to advance reforms to the economic system that negate the foundation of economic oligarchy. The market should be allowed to play the decisive role, and the government-market relationship must be streamlined to prevent the former from meddling in the latter. Meanwhile, the budget legislation is to be bettered, because without a modern budgetary system, all anti-graft efforts are futile.
