Former senior officials punished for sheltering gangs and accepting bribes

The Communist Party of China's Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission on Wednesday made public six cases on gang-related corruption and "protective umbrellas" that shelter gangs.

The cases involved former senior officials in the provinces of Liaoning, Zhejiang, Hunan, Jiangsu, Guangdong and Henan who took advantage of their posts to interfere in judicial activities, failed to fulfill their duties in accordance with the law, took advantage of their power to seek illicit gains for gangsters or even took part in gang-related crimes themselves, according to the statement.

Such "protective umbrellas" that shelter gangs lead public officials to distance themselves from the public, make light of their concerns and neglect their well-being, the statement read, asking Party members and civil servants to learn from these cases and stay vigilant.

In a case given in the statement, the mayor and Party chief, as well as another senior official in Donggang, Liaoning province, offered protection for a gang headed by two brothers surnamed Song involved in seafood fishing, mining, real estate development and other industries in the city.

From 2008 to 2017, Mayor Liu Shengjun, Party Chief Yang Naiwen and Gao Jun, director of the local economic development zone, knew that the Song brothers were engaged in illegal and criminal activities but still accepted bribes from them.

In return, the officials helped them with project contracting. The brothers' companies obtained about a quarter of the housing and hydraulic projects in the city. The officials supported the gang's use of threats and violence against competitors, and later mediated the incidents.

The three officials were all expelled from the Party and public office and sentenced to fixed-term imprisonment, according to the statement.

"Thunder-like" measures should be taken to root out such "protective umbrellas" and networks, so as to purify the political atmosphere and extend full and strict governance over the Party to grassroots levels, the CCDI and the NSC said.

They also called for a thorough investigation into and stronger action against gang-related cases, further cooperation with political and legal organs and combined efforts to mitigate formalism and bureaucratism.

In January last year, the Communist Party of China's Central Committee and the State Council, China's Cabinet, launched a three-year campaign against gangs to improve the public's sense of security.

China Daily - Xinhua