Corruption probe widens to former official

A former Shanghai land use official is under investigation as part of a probe into a series of graft cases in the city.

Yin Guoyuan, former deputy director of the Shanghai housing, land and resources administrative bureau, is under investigation, the Shanghai Securities News reported yesterday.

It didn't elaborate on potential charges.

The disclosure came after eight ministerial level government departments, led by the Ministry of Construction, announced a nation-wide campaign recently to examine irregularities in the country's sizzling real estate market.

Yin reportedly took bribes to sign off on real estate transactions..

Yin, who took up the post in January 1995, left to become chairman of the Shanghai Land Institute in October 2005.

"Because he was in charge of land-use approval, almost all land transfer contracts required Yin's signature," a former worker at the bureau told the newspaper.

Last month, the discipline inspection commission of CPC of Shanghai, announced that nine officials and State-owned company executives in the city, who were involved in the city's pension fund scandal, were expelled from the Party and their posts.

They included Zhu Wenjin, section chief of the bureau's land-utilization management department.

Zhu, a former subordinate of Yin, was accused of bribe taking and abusing his power.

An estimated 3.7 billion yuan ($483 million) from the city's social security fund was misappropriated and used for investments in risky real estate, roads and other projects, leading to the country's biggest scandal in recent years.

Former Shanghai Party chief Chen Liangyu was removed from his post due to his ties with to the scandal last year.

Zhou Zhengkun, Party secretary of the State-owned assets supervision and administration commission of Central China's Hunan Province, was put under investigation for severe disciplinary charges, reported the Hunan Daily.

Zhou was accused of seeking to use his power for personal gain when as mayor of Chenzhou and Party secretary of the commission in Hunan.

Source: China Daily