Tighter cadre supervision urged

Party leaders demand timely removal of unqualified members

Top leaders asked on Monday to "deal with unqualified Party members in a timely way", in what experts called their latest and toughest stand against corruption.

A handful of Party members are "corrupt and degenerate", leaders warned at a meeting of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China Central Committee.

"The faith of a few Party members has wavered and they have a weak understanding of the Party's tenets and have not followed discipline," according to a statement issued after the meeting.

"Some Party organs are not strict with enlisting members, and the quality of members who are recruited needs improvement," the statement said, adding that such problems have affected the Party's image and prestige among the public.

Lin Zhe, a professor at the Party School of the CPC Central Committee, said top leaders have sent consistent messages and showed their resolve to contain corruption among Party members.

"Unqualified Party members" is a term that targets not only corrupt officials but also those who violate Party discipline, use public funds or power for private entertainment or indulge themselves in bureaucracy or an extramarital affair, Lin said.

The Party needs to kick them out. In the meantime, authorities should institutionalize the screening system, Lin said.

Lin listed a few pressing measures to be considered, such as the launch of an asset declaration system for officials, putting a limit on the value of gifts received by officials and naming the key departments in charge of oversight and defining their responsibilities.