Funds to help poor stolen by officials

Low-level officials found to have misappropriated funds intended for poor people in the nine latest disclosed cases have been punished, anti-corruption authorities said on Monday.

The cases were disclosed on the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the country's top anti-graft agency.

The move sounds a warning for local officials who may be tempted to dip into such funds and also signals the need for government departments to make a greater effort to fight this type of corruption, according to anti-graft authorities and experts in the field.