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Xi Jinping's anti-corruption campaign
China

Corrupt officials hauled up for using daily commute to shirk duties

Over 6,000 party cadres – mostly low-ranking and from rural areas – called to task on graft allegations, with some having chalked up hefty sums in travel expenses

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Many city-dwelling government officials appointed in rural areas are allegedly using their daily commute as an excuse to escape work duties. Photo: Reuters

City cadres appointed to rural offices have come under scrutiny for their commuting practices - and the costs involved - with some accused of failing to make it to the office altogether.

More than 6,000 officials were being investigated by anti-graft officers for suspected misuse of travel expenses, Xinhua reported, without giving a time frame. Most were low-ranking city-dwellers appointed to rural areas, it said.

These "migrating officials" often used their commute as an excuse to either ignore or avoid their official duties.

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Some remained in the city where they resided instead of reporting for work at their rural offices.

A total of 6,484 officials across nine provinces are being investigated, including 2,350 in Heilongjiang , 513 in Henan and 60 in Hainan .

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One official told Xinhua that petrol and maintenance fees for the cars of the dozens of officials in his county amounted to about 200,000 yuan (HK$252,800) a year.

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