China anti-corruption probe finds local governments are still ‘fabricating’ economic data
- The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) conducted two rounds of inspections over the last two years, covering 19 of mainland China’s 31 provincial jurisdictions
- It also included nine departments within the State Council, and found evidence of fraud in various cities across the country
Further cases of economic data fraud by local governments in China have been reported by the country’s top anti-corruption agency following a two-year investigation.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) conducted two separate rounds of statistical inspections, covering 19 of mainland China’s 31 provincial jurisdictions, as well as nine departments within the State Council.
A report published on Thursday by the official newspaper of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the Communist Party’s disciplinary watchdog, said that inspectors had found evidence of fraud in various cities across the country.
“In some cases, local party committees and governments forced subordinates and enterprises to fabricate figures at each level to complete their target achievement mission; some companies did not resist or object to the interference in their independent reporting rights, but instead catered to the local governments and relevant departments, in exchange for development support,” said Mao Youfeng, deputy NBS bureau chief, according to the report.
Local governments in China have long been suspected of fabricating economic figures, with the common perception among officials that their career prospects are still closely related to economic performance.
China’s top leaders, though, have signalled a shift from focusing on quantity to attributing more weight to the quality of economic development in recent years.
The NBS will carry out a further third round of checks and achieve “full coverage” of regular statistical inspections of provincial and regional party committees and governments before the end of the year, the report said.