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12 Aug, 2014

Chinese discipline body seeks tipoffs to curb lavish spending by government officials

Beijing, 2014-08-12 Xinhua (China Daily)  – As the traditional Mid-Autumn Festival nears, the Communist Party of China’s top discipline agency is calling on the public to report incidents of officials lavishly spending during the holiday.

The CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection opened a column on its website to invite the public to submit tipoffs of excessive spending by officials during the upcoming festival.

Misconduct could include using public funds to buy moon cakes and gift cards, a statement on the CCDI website said late Sunday.

Violators would be named in a weekly report on the website, they said.

Celebratory gifts and feasts, usually involving the sweet or savory filled pastries known as moon cakes, are a custom during Mid-Autumn Festival, which falls on Sept 8 this year.

“The moves aim to better implement the eight-point rule and prevent a relapse of harmful work style,” the statement said.

The eight-point rule was introduced by the CPC leadership at the end of 2012 with the aim of rejecting extravagance and excessive formalities among Party members.

By the end of June, 61,703 officials had been disciplined for breaching the eight-point rule, according to the CCDI.