Corruption at the top puts Maoming in the spotlight
The scent of a new round of anti-corruption turmoil is in the air in the south, with the investigation of a group of senior officials dismissed from their posts or arrested in Maoming, Guangdong.
State media reported earlier this month that Luo Yinguo, the city's Communist Party boss, had been arrested for alleged corruption, two days after the Lunar New Year holiday.
On February 10, Luo, 57, was told to go to Guangzhou for a meeting. As soon as his car arrived at the Guangdong Provincial Committee, Luo was detained and transferred to the prosecutor's office.
Last month, a real-name written accusation circulated on the internet saying Luo had abused his power to transfer ownership of state-owned assets worth hundreds of millions of yuan.
The provincial anti-graft watchdog has not detailed the charges against Luo. He was removed from his post the day after his arrest.
Luo is the highest-ranking official targeted by graft-busters since the arrest of former Shenzhen mayor Xu Zongheng , who was stripped of his party membership and position in August last year for 'serious disciplinary violations'. At least three district heads allegedly involved in Xu's case were also arrested.
In the past two years, several top officials in Guangdong have been indicted in anti-corruption crackdowns. Political adviser Chen Shaoji was detained in April 2009 and received a suspended death sentence last month. Graft-buster Wang Huayuan and the head of the provincial labour and social security department, Liu Youjun, also fell. All lost their positions.
Last year, the watchdog questioned more than 100 senior Guangdong officials in investigations that resulted in officials and police officers from cities such as Maoming, Foshan, Shanwei and Shantou being detained. Maoming, one of the largest petrochemical production bases in western Guangdong, is merely the latest scandal hot spot to see officials toppled.
Among them was Yang Guangliang, Maoming's vice-mayor, who was detained in late 2009 for allegedly taking bribes and using his post to extort 80 million yuan (HK$94.7 million). Chen Yachun, another vice-mayor, was investigated in October after corruption allegations were posted online by a woman claiming to be his mistress.
Two senior police officials - Cheng Bin, chief of Maoming's Public Security Bureau, and Yang Qiang, director of the Maogang district Public Security Bureau - were detained for allegedly providing protection to criminal gangs.
A man in the construction industry - using his real name - said online the gang had collected more than 10 million yuan from him, the Yangcheng Evening News reported. Maoming prison director Cheng Jiazeng and 10 officials were removed from their posts or detained in 2009 for cutting deals with inmates.
'Nothing about the corruption cases in Maoming shocks me any more,' said a retired engineer at state-owned Maoming Petrochemical who refused to give his name.
'For decades, Maoming was relatively apart from other Guangdong cities, as all its leaders were born and bred in the city. It looks as if it has its own political circle. Nepotism and buying and selling official positions are rampant on all levels,' the engineer said.
In Luo's case, investigators found more than 10 million yuan in cash in his office and home, according to the Economic Observer News. The report said the money was Lunar New Year's gifts to Luo this year. It is customary for top officials and director-level officials to receive millions of yuan.
Luo's downfall might make many Guangdong officials squirm, as there are signs the anti-corruption campaign has moved from the provincial level towards city-level leaders.
According to local media, two more senior officials - Zhong Huoming, party head of Maogang district, and Tan Weihua, deputy head of the district - were taken away for questioning on Wednesday.
