Party transfers most local discipline chiefs

Seventeen out of 27 heads of local Chinese disciplinary organs have been transferred from other regions or central government bodies, a move interpreted by experts as beneficial for fighting corruption.

Of the 27 discipline inspection commissions and supervision departments at provincial level, 13 secretaries were transferred from other provinces or autonomous regions and four were assigned by the central government, the Beijing Times reported on Monday.

According to information from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the disciplinary head of Chongqing was transferred from the Ningxia Hui Autonomous Region.

The Beijing disciplinary boss was also moved from Henan province.

Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin and Chongqing have also made public their organizational structure as well as previous work by their discipline inspection commissions as the first step in a series of reports launched by the Central Commission in Beijing on Saturday.

"Such appointments of watchdogs can prevent officials from forming their own 'circle of power' in the calculation of interests," Hu Xingdou, a political science professor with the Beijing Institute of Technology, told the Global Times.

"It also helps to carry out investigation or supervision in a fair and just way," said Hu.

Chinese Academy of Governance Professor Zhu Lijia agreed with Hu.

This method of official appointments could help prevent corruption and better support the central government's extensive anti-graft efforts, Zhu told the Global Times.

"It has intensified the vertical leadership of the Central Commission, which is also in accordance with the reform decision that grants more power for discipline commissions at higher levels," Zhu said.

Each local discipline inspection agency is under the dual leadership of the Communist Party committee at the same level and the inspection agency of its superior level.

The Party will grant more power to superior discipline inspection agencies in future, Xinhua reported.