CHINA will establish a new anti-graft body to further strengthen pressure on “unprecedentedly serious” corruption issues, Deputy Procurator-General Qiu Xueqiang said yesterday.

    Qiu said the plan for a new anti-graft agency was put forward by the Party committee of the Supreme People’s Procuratorate (SPP) and has been approved by the central authority.

    A vice-ministerial level, full-time member of the procuratorial committee will hold a concurrent post as head of the new anti-graft agency, Qiu added.

    The new agency will be better organized and better able to help the SPP handle major cases and break institutional obstacles, he said.

    China established the anti-corruption bureau under the SPP in 1995. After almost 20 years of development, it struggled to meet the demands for anti-corruption work under the new situation due to poor effectiveness in handling corruption cases, Qiu added.

    The new agency is another step for strengthened effort to crack down on corrupt officials since the 18th National Congress of the Party in November 2012.

    Since the beginning of the campaign, more than 50 officials at the provincial and ministerial level or higher have been investigated for corruption and other serious disciplinary violations.

    Although the authority’s determination is unprecedented, corruption problems at present are unprecedentedly serious, Qiu said.

    He said the campaign has won full support from the people and faces both unprecedented challenges and opportunities.

    He vowed to handle major cases and maintain high pressure over corruption, punishing every corrupt official found guilty to curb the spread of corruption.(Xinhua)