China has announced a corruption investigation into Jiang Jiemin, the head of the commission that oversees state-owned companies.
The supervision ministry said Jiang Jiemin was suspected of a “serious violation of discipline”.
The term is used to refer to corruption by managers of state companies.
President Xi Jinping has vowed to eradicate corruption in China, warning that it threatens the Communist Party.
Jiang Jiemin was suspected of a serious violation of discipline
Recent months have seen several high-profile corruption cases against high-ranking officials, including disgraced senior party official Bo Xilai, who was put on trial for bribery, embezzlement and abuse of power in August.
The verdict in his case is expected “at a date to be decided”. Bo Xilai denies all charges.
Until March Jiang Jiemin was head of the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), which has faced a number of corruption allegations.
Last week it was announced that another four CNPC executives were under investigation for corruption.
Earlier in August the general manager of state-owned phone company China Mobile Ltd was detained in the southern province of Guangdong. He too is being investigated for discipline violations.
Internet users are also increasingly pursuing those perceived as having done wrong through online exposes and campaigns.
In recent weeks there have been signs that this has worried the authorities, with a number of journalists arrested for “rumor-mongering” and a high-profile blogger arrested.
[youtube sqFWOTgtmSE]
Chinese authorities have announced that some senior executives of the local division of GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) are facing a criminal investigation.
They are being investigated for bribery and tax-related violations, said the Chinese Ministry of Public Security.
They are suspected of offering bribes to officials and doctors in an attempt to boost sales in the country.
GSK said in response to the allegations that it had found no evidence of bribery or corruption in China.
“We are willing to co-operate with the authorities in this inquiry,” the company said in a statement, adding that it had only just received official word of the “specific nature” of the investigation.
“We take all allegations of bribery and corruption seriously,” the statement said.
GSK senior executives are being investigated in China for bribery and tax-related violations
“We continuously monitor our businesses to ensure they meet our strict compliance procedures – we have done this in China and found no evidence of bribery or corruption of doctors or government officials. However, if evidence of such activity is provided, we will act swiftly on it.”
The Chinese Ministry of Public Security said in a statement that police had questioned some of the suspects.
It accused the firm of bribing government officials and doctors, as well as overstating tax receipts.
“The case involves many people, the duration of time is long, the amount of money involved is huge and the criminal activities are malicious,” the ministry said.
Senior executives at GSK are already being investigated by Changsha public security officials for “economic crimes”, the city’s police force said last month. However, it is not clear if the Changsha investigation is related to any of the latest allegations.
