Sunday, November 13, 2016 http://dailyasianage.com/news/37592/anti-corruption-strategy-of-xi--jinping-and-sheikh-hasina
Anti-corruption strategy of Xi Jinping and Sheikh Hasina M S Siddiqui
Corruption has always been a serious issue for many countries and Bangladesh is no exception. Over the years, China has had to deal with corruption scandals in epic proportions that have involved even the most senior officials of the Chinese Communist Party. During the initial stage of reform in China by former leader Deng Xiaoping, a doctrine of "letting some people get rich first" had fostered this extravagant and grandiose culture to top government officials; frugality and thrift are now the buzzwords. The present charismatic Chinese leader Xi Jinping rightly assessed the situation after assuming the office of Secretary General of party at the 18th Party Congress in November 2012 and rightly said that "Failing to tackle corruption will inevitably lead to the downfall of the party and the state". He signaled that anti-corruption would be one of the themes of his tenure. Since then, his anti-graft campaign has grown into one of the largest campaigns against corruption in modern China's history. Xi presented an eight-point regulation code in a meeting of the Party Central Committee within three weeks after the 18th CPC national congress.
The document imposes restrictions on official behavior to strengthen the ties between the public and the officials, whose corruption and power abuse may have disastrous effect on public trust. The code requires officials to keep in close contact with the grassroots organizations, reduce bureaucratic visits, pomp and ceremony, and bans the use of luxurious cars and other inappropriate extravagance. A common Chinese practice of "GuanXi"? related to gift giving ? previously seen as a way of building relationships and social connections based on those gifts have for long been viewed as a form of corruption especially by foreigners. As the crackdown on corruption continues, officials are becoming more circumspect in their involvement in such practices. Even, China's party leadership has now banned accepting trinkets as flower arrangements for officials in meeting rooms and hotels as well as other luxurious gifts during festivals. Additionally, the government officials now have caps on daily spending when travelling around the country. The ruling Chinese Communist Party (CPC) formed the Central Commission for Discipline and Inspection (CCDI), an internal watchdog on corruption to deal with internal corruption within the Communist Party's structures. Xi vowed to crack down on 'tigers' and 'flies' that is, high-level officials and local civil servants alike. Most of the officials investigated were removed from office and faced accusations for bribery and abuse of power, although the range of alleged abuses varied widely. The actions executed largely under the direction of the CCDI and its Secretary Wang Qishan along with corresponding military and judicial organs. Xi then started fighting on 'tigers' and 'flies' at the same time, resolutely investigating lawbreaking cases of leading officials and also earnestly resolving the unhealthy tendencies of corruption. The government has emphasized another area of dealing with corruption, that is doing away with extravagance and hedonism that encourages a misplaced sense of entitlement. Often, the ruling officials splurge on themselves with impunity as they lead opulent lifestyles supported by state coffers. Xi has decided to take bold actions to deal with the scourge of corruption. For instance, a pilot program launched for CCDI makes it mandatory for all newly promoted officials to disclose their spouses' and children's employment status, assets owned as well as international travel records. It's a bid to ensure transparency and accountability in government officials, as they would have to account for any large and unjustified accumulation of wealth whilst they occupy positions of influence. The CCDI is the party's all-powerful watchdog ? monitor, investigator, accuser and executioner ? of corruption, bad management and anti-party behavior amongst its 87 million members. From high-ranking party officials to civil servants ? thousands of people suspected of corruption have been arrested and convicted. Hundreds of officials including both senior leaders and
bureaucrats have been investigated and prosecuted. By 2016, the campaign has 'netted' over 120 high-ranking officials, including about a dozen high-ranking military officers, several senior executives of state-owned companies, and five national leaders. More than 100,000 people have been indicted for corruption. President Xi has also taken a bold step to a massive anti-corruption campaign, aimed at fighting who become rich through bribery and patronage. The government has started a vigorous campaign to clean up malfeasance within party ranks and to shore up party unity. It has become an emblematic feature of Xi Jinping's political brand. He is now considered one of the best leaders of China after Mao Zedong. The campaign has brought out that scandals involving highly placed leaders, day-to-day incidents of minor corruption and the sheer inefficiency or negligence by local cadres are among the most potent sources of public discontent. The campaign can be broken down into three stages: l Would not dare to be corrupt, where historical indiscretions of both serving and retired party cadres would be pursued. l Would not be able to be corrupt, where new procedures would be embedded to not allow corrupt activity. l Would not want to be corrupt, otherwise known as the "would not think of it" stage where the party has a mature service ethic. The campaign was notable in implicating both incumbent and former national leaders, including a former Politburo Standing Committee (PSC) member and former military leaders. Such investigations broke the unspoken rule regarding 'PSC criminal immunity' that has been the norm since the end of the Cultural Revolution. Interestingly, Journalists have also been subjects to arrest. Reporters from the state-run CCTV channels along with those from well-known business news websites have been detained under the orders of the Communist Party. Some have welcomed the campaign, arguing that low salaries and the lack of a proper regulatory body have created a climate in which corruption amongst journalists is common. But there are growing concerns over the way the campaign is being carried out. According to the Listening Post's reports, critics opined that China's anti-corruption drive is being used to silence the voices in the media the government doesn't like. Zhang Lifan, a prominent scholar of modern Chinese history said that the medias have deep connections with and are controlled by officials and interest groups, so it's not difficult to understand why we have problems such as 'paid reporting', 'paid self-censorship' and 'paid badmouthing'. It's all about money. If the system is corrupt, media cannot be clean. It has been discussed in China that the problem cannot be rooted out unless the party undertakes fundamental political reforms, such as the development of an independent judiciary and media. But even as China tries to put itself back on course, Bangladesh could learn from the Asian giant's handling of corruption.
Though it is not enough overcome China's image as a corruption-fuelled nation, it's still sufficient to enable to stand out against its ruthlessness. But more importantly, the Chinese fight against corruption has attracted the involvement of the top leaders. The top rungs of leadership, with President Xi at the forefront have been consistent in their anti-corruption message and not merely political rhetoric. This is definitely something that is needed in Bangladesh as part of efforts to confront corruption. We hope that Bangladeshi Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina will find a lieutenant like Secretary Wang Qishan of CCDI and some loyal leaders and workers in rank. People have been given a positive signal with jail term for current Parliament member Bodi in corruption case. She has already proven her leadership as a statesperson and we expect her to brand herself as a crusader against corruption.
The writer is a Legal Economist