The top decision-making body of China’s Communist Party reviewed rules governing the personal disclosures of top officials, a sign President Xi Jinping is holding firm on his anti-corruption campaign.
(Bloomberg) — The top decision-making body of China’s Communist Party reviewed rules governing the personal disclosures of top officials, a sign President Xi Jinping is holding firm on his anti-corruption campaign.
The Politburo said the rules are significant to “further enhancing the management and supervision of leaders and cadres,” according to a statement released by the official Xinhua News Agency on Thursday. The statement didn’t provide details about the changes made.
“Honestly reporting to the party about personal matters is a political and organizational discipline every leader and cadre must comply with,” Xinhua said. Officials must be “loyal and honest” to the party and voluntarily accept supervision, it said, urging senior officials to take the lead in executing the rules to “set an example.”
China has long required party members to disclose information on the involvement of spouses and their children in business, but these disclosures are internal and not subject to public scrutiny. The Politburo’s announcement Thursday suggests that a crackdown on corrupt officials remains a focus for Xi even after he successfully surrounded himself with allies in his norm-breaking third-term in power.
In June last year, China broadened rules governing how relatives of top party cadres can behave in businesses. Governments are allowed to ask their spouses, children and the spouses of children to exit a business if any violations are uncovered in annual disclosures.
The regulations also said that officials will face tougher restrictions the higher they climb the rungs of power.
When the party expelled former Interpol President Meng Hongwei in 2019, part of the accusations he faced by the anti-graft watchdog was his failure to report personal matters according to regulations.
The Politburo also said Thursday that educational programs will start in April targeting officials above the county level to make sure they follow Xi’s thoughts closely.
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