Plea for speedy passage of legislation to fight corruption
LEGISLATORS have demanded more 'supervision powers' over the Government to check corruption and promote efficiency.
At an NPC session yesterday, they also faulted the State Council on economic issues including declining revenues and excessively rigid planning.
Xinhua (the New China News Agency) yesterday quoted members as demanding a more speedy passage of a law on supervision, regarded as a 'forceful weapon to strengthen the country's law enforcement'.
'The existing legislative, administrative, judicial and media systems do have supervisory stipulations,' the deputies reportedly said. 'However, they appear to be weak in the fight against fraud and corruption.' Ningxia province deputy He Shengzao was quoted as saying that 'the major reason for law negligence and loose implementation of laws was the lack of a supervisory system and an imperfect legal system'.
A draft resolution on Premier Li Peng's Government Work Report adopted yesterday pointed out that the NPC should 'strengthen supervision and checks on Government departments' to better promote clean government.
Sources close to the NPC said that a number of deputies were not satisfied with the fact that while Mr Li had highlighted the corruption scourge, he had failed to come up with solutions.
They said in earlier drafts, the work report had given a more in-depth treatment to the causes of corruption as well as ways to combat it.