China’s official corruption

According to state run news agencies, 88 people were arrested or prosecuted for mishandling funds last year. The state auditor doesn’t name names, but he does point to larger departments in his report. His investigation turned up more of the same which lead up to $6.7 billion dollars of misused or embezzled money. This analyst says China should be doing better if it wants to be considered a stronger economy. She says part of the problem is the one-party Communist State is trying to police itself, and the legal system is underdeveloped, which means many people use �grease money� to get deals moving ahead. And that corruption leads to simmering resentment among Chinese citizens, who list corruption among one of their chief complaints. The Chinese government has now set up hotlines to allow for citizens to complain. But this analyst says punishing offenders doesn’t address the system that allows for corruption in the first place. By releasing the auditor’s report, the Chinese government is trying to send a message that it is handling the problem.