Anti-graft drive bolsters reform

In leading the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China in a well-publicized probe to Xu Caihou, a former vice-chairman of the Central Military Commission accused of selling ranks in the military, Party General Secretary Xi Jinping has affirmed that his anti-corruption drive is the boldest and most serious that China has ever experienced.

If there were ever doubts that Xi could restore faith in a party that had suffered less public trust, many of them have been dispelled by the steady dismissals of high-ranking officials since he became Party general secretary in late 2012. The drums began to beat louder in 2013 with the successive convictions of former Political Bureau member Bo Xilai and former minister of railways Liu Zhijun.

So far, more than 182,000 Party officials at various levels have been investigated, and 30-plus leaders of vice-ministerial level or above arrested, including five members of the 18th CPC Central Committee.