Beijing auditors inspect management of national lotteries after transparency fears
National Audit Office launches probe after 'irregularities' found at local organisations
A surprise audit has been launched of state lottery funds around the country that generate billions of yuan each year, amid fears that cash may have been misused.
The inspections by the National Audit Office came after investigations uncovered "accounting irregularities" at local lottery organisations, the state newspaper Economic Information Daily reported yesterday.
Eighteen special teams under the National Audit Office, together with officials from the organisation's headquarters, had each been assigned a province to investigate in the month-long exercise, the newspaper said, citing staff involved in the inspections.
Regional auditors, who regularly check the books of local government organisations, had been excluded from the exercise.
An unnamed local auditor told the newspaper that the national review was "very significant" as it had come out of the blue and was not among national auditors' scheduled annual inspections.
The report did not mention which 18 provinces or areas would be included in the financial investigations, which started in the middle of this month.
There are two official nationwide lotteries, overseen by the Ministry of Finance.