Shangcai County, one of the most AIDS-afflicted counties in
central China's Henan Province, has been dealt another blow
when its former head, Yang Songquan, was arrested on bribery
charges, a local anti-corruption official revealed yesterday.
Former secretary of the Shangcai County Committee of the
Communist Party of China (CPC), Yang was discovered to have taken
bribes over a river treatment project, said Ding Lei, director of
the anti-corruption department of the Zhumadian Municipal People's
Procuratorate.
But, Ding added, there is no evidence to suggest Yang embezzled
money allocated by the central and provincial governments for AIDS
prevention and treatment.
Yang was arrested on August 4, 2006. Investigations into Yang
are ongoing, according to Ding. Yang was sacked from office in
August 2005 following a great number of complaints from local
people, pointing to the county's sluggish social development and
economic torpor.
Investigations have so far indicated that Yang accepted a bribe
of 100,000 yuan (US$12,500) in relation to the Xiaohong River
treatment project, said Ding. Yang is also found to have received
monetary gifts both at his father's funeral and at his daughter's
wedding, actions violating the self-disciplinary regulations
imposed on leading Party cadres.
(Xinhua News Agency August 18, 2006)