'Corruption on wheels' still rampant despite strict rules

Even when faced with the risk of being removed from their posts, some officials are still treating government cars as their own.

The Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee issued a package of rules in December of last year requiring officials to refrain from excessive spending of public money, including misuse of government-funded cars. Violators could have their behavior exposed to the public, be removed from their posts, or even fired.

The CPC disciplinary watchdog has strengthened official and media supervision and has even adopted GPS technology to curb rampant abuse of these vehicles.

However, between last December and the end of September of this year, more than 4,800 cases were discovered involving officials who used government vehicles for private purposes or purchased excessively luxurious cars, according to statistics released on Monday.

The figure accounts for one third of nearly 15,000 cases of frugality guideline violations, which also include bans on government building projects, excessive spending on receptions, and unnecessary trips in China and abroad using public money.

Expenditures on government-funded vehicles, along with overseas trips and receptions, are traditionally held to be the three biggest sources of corruption and waste.

Although these vehicles are intended for official business, some officials use the cars to drop off children at school, attend wedding parties, and go shopping or traveling.

One city-level public procurator named Zhou Jianlin in Qinghai Province was found to have driven a police car to pay home visits in another province. Another public security official in Qinghai was punished for paying New Year calls by government car.

It is also common for government departments to require subordinate enterprises or institutions to "temporarily transfer" vehicles whose prices go beyond standard budgets to the higher-level departments.

Some officials have been caught shielding vehicle plates or drunk driving while in government cars. In August of this year, four people were killed as Xu Jianping, a deputy head of the forestry bureau in east China's Nanchang City, drove an official car after drinking alcohol.

Car use creates more opportunities for corruption, as some will run up large bills for gasoline and so-called "repairs" to receive reimbursements from the government.

"It takes more than 800 yuan to pay all the fees," said a county-level official who was found to frequently drive a government car home during weekends. The payment was reimbursed by the government.