Crucial stage in anti-graft campaign

The roving inspection teams sent by Wang are headed by recently retired senior officials who report directly to Wang's commission. During their tours, these teams privately interview local officials to gather information on the misconduct of their colleagues.

Thus, it has become much harder for local officials to conceal their crimes or protect each other because some of their colleagues, out of fear or spite, have incentives to denounce them to the roving inspection teams.

A second important initiative credited to Wang was the requirement that any corruption investigation conducted in a jurisdiction must be reported to the anti-corruption agency at a superior level. In the past, local officials could cover up the wrongdoings of their colleagues with relative ease because they did not have to report to their superiors such investigations. Now it will be much more difficult to do so because of this reporting requirement.

But, no matter how encouraging the initial results of Xi's anti-corruption campaign, the war is far from won. In fact, it is entering a crucial phase.

Xi has gained immense public support for his resolve to crack down on corruption inside the Party and the State. But Xi may have to balance the need to fight corruption with maintaining the unity of the elite.

An even more difficult challenge facing Xi is how to sustain the campaign. So far it has been waged from the top down, in a typical centralized fashion. Continuing such campaigns will be more costly and yield decreasing results (because local officials will quickly learn to adapt).

A more promising approach that will build strong foundations for better governance is to utilize the rule of law and the power of the media and civil society. This approach will increase transparency and reduce the costs of monitoring the bureaucracy. Of course, this is a risky strategy politically because of expected opposition from those who fear instability, but Xi and his colleagues may have no choice if they want to demonstrate their commitment to clean government and good governance.

The author is a professor of government at Claremont McKenna College. www.chinausfocus.com

(China Daily 04/23/2014 page8)

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