BEIJING: Xi Jinping, general secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, on Monday called for advancing the Party’s self-reform and winning the tough and protracted battle against corruption.
Xi, also Chinese president and chairman of the Central Military Commission, made the remarks while addressing the third plenary session of the 20th CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
After persistent anti-corruption efforts over the past 10 years of the new era, an overwhelming victory has been achieved in the fight against corruption, with the gains fully consolidated, Xi said.
“But the situation remains grave and complex,” Xi noted.
“We should be fully aware of new developments in the fight against corruption and the breeding grounds and conditions for corruption,” Xi said, urging more effort towards winning the tough and protracted battle.
He said the country should take coordinated steps to ensure that officials do not have the audacity, opportunity, or desire to become corrupt.
Xi also stressed the need to further strengthen the centralized and unified leadership of the CPC over anti-corruption work.
The anti-corruption drive should maintain high pressure, Xi noted and said China will deepen its anti-corruption drive in areas including finance, state-owned firms, energy, medicine and infrastructure projects, and clean up hidden risks.
“The essence of corruption is power abuse,” Xi pointed out and noted it is necessary to deepen reforms to block the breeding and spreading of corruption.
Xi urged efforts to further improve the anti-corruption legislation and system, calling on the country to advance national anti-corruption legislation and amend the Law on Supervision in keeping with the times.
Xi vowed to increase bribery penalties, saying those offering bribes repeatedly should be harshly punished.
He called for keeping working to improve the political environment in the Party so as to build a clean work relationship among colleagues and between ranking officials and their subordinates. To promote a culture of integrity in the new era, Xi called for launching education campaigns to enhance Party consciousness, improve Party conduct, and tighten Party discipline. The family values, family education and family building must be stressed, Xi highlighted and said party officials should be strict with their family members and relatives. Discipline inspection and supervision agencies must be loyal, pure and reliable, Xi added. Members of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee Li Qiang, Zhao Leji, Wang Huning, Cai Qi and Ding Xuexiang attended the meeting. Li Xi, a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee and secretary of the CCDI, presided over the meeting. –The Daily Mail-CGTN news exchange item
