China punishes 4,469 officials in May

BEIJING -- A total of 4,469 officials were disciplined for violating frugality and ethical rules in May, the Communist Party of China's (CPC) top anti-graft body said Tuesday.

The punished officials were implicated in 3,215 cases, 793 of which involved unauthorized allowances or subsidies, the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) said in a report on its website.

Other violations included unapproved use of public vehicles, unauthorized acceptance and giving of gifts, use of public funds for travel, as well as extravagant weddings and funerals.

China has been working hard to rein in corruption and make its civil servants more disciplined in their working style, in response to public complaint over the behavior of certain officials.

The CCDI established a monthly reporting system in August 2013 to monitor the implementation of the "eight-point rules" nationwide, which were introduced on Dec. 4, 2012 by the CPC to reduce bureaucracy, extravagance, and undesirable work habits.

By the end of May, 20,951 officials had been punished for violating these rules in 2016.