Senior Chinese leaders have called for more intensive monitoring of officials to tackle the rising number of corruption cases in medical and educational sectors.

"An effective system is the key, and all central government departments should take a lead in (cracking down on corruption)," wrote Premier Wen Jiabao in an comment on the national conference of discipline inspection, which opened on Monday.

"Removing malpractice and cracking down on corruption are closely related to national stability and public interests," Wu Guanzheng, secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Communist Party of China (CPC), wrote in a letter to the conference's opening ceremony.

Governments and CPC committees should exert more effort in fighting commercial corruption in the purchase and distribution of pharmaceuticals,medical equipment and services, and irregularities in the educational sector such as the overcharging of tuition fees, and infringement of farmers' interests, said Wu.

Wu, also a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee, called on local departments to promptly address the need to protect public interests.

The authorities investigated 2,755 commercial bribery cases in the health sector, involving more than 100 million yuan (12.8 million U.S. dollars) in 2006.

During last year's nationwide crackdown on corruption in the health sector, 693 health staff were sentenced on charges of commercial corruption or punished according to Party or political disciplines.

The government also urged health staff to voluntarily turn in bribes, and about 270 million yuan had been turned in by health workers by Dec. 31, according to the Ministry of Health.

In China, some companies and individuals offer commissions to health officials and staff to secure contracts for substandard drugs and medical equipment, resulting in many medical accidents.

Illegal deals between health staff and pharmaceutical dealers also contributed to rising medical expenses. Some doctors prescribe expensive drugs for which they receive kickbacks. Meanwhile, patients have to pay more for better treatment, fueling public distrust of hospitals.

Meanwhile, the overcharging of miscellaneous school fees is rampant in some areas, although the government officially granted free compulsory education to all rural students earlier this year.

Source: Xinhua