A deputy chief of the State Food and Drug Administration has become the latest official implicated in the agency's corruption scandal, in which five officials have been arrested already this year.
Zhang Jingli was recently put under shuanggui, a Communist Party disciplinary mechanism in which he must confess his wrongdoings at a designated place and time, the China Business Journal reported yesterday, citing unidentified source. The report did not state the reason for his shuanggui.
If confirmed, Zhang will be the first disgraced high-ranking official in the administration since former chief Zheng Xiaoyu, who was executed in 2007 for taking bribes of more than 6 million yuan and approved six fake drugs.
Staff at the administration told the South China Morning Post the rumour of Zhang's shuanggui had been circulating since last week.
Calls to the press office of the administration were not answered. The China Business Journal said administration spokeswoman Yan Jiangying would not verify the news.
Zhang, 55, was still listed as the No1 deputy chief on the administration's website last night. His most recent appearance in public, according to the website, was on April 9, when he inspected administration work in Guangxi .