Chinese President Xi Jinping has vowed to step up the fight against corruption in key sectors including finance, energy and infrastructure, state media reported.
Xi, who began his second decade as China's top leader in 2022 in a break with long-standing political norms, has waged a fierce campaign against corruption since taking power.
Supporters say the campaign promotes clean governance, although critics counter that it serves Xi as a means of purging political opponents.
In a speech to the ruling Communist Party's anti-corruption agency, Xi ordered "greater efforts" to fight corruption in "finance, state-owned enterprises, energy, medicine and infrastructure," state news agency Xinhua reported.
"A crushing victory has been achieved in the fight against corruption, and the achievements have been fully consolidated" in the past ten years, Xi said.
But "the situation remains serious and complex," he warned.
"We must be fully aware of the new developments in the fight against corruption, as well as the favorable conditions for it," he said.
According to the latest official data as of June 2022, about 4.8 million party officials in China have been investigated since 2012.
Of these, more than 1.5 million have received punishments ranging from long prison terms to dismissal from official positions, demotion and expulsion from the party.
In recent months, the campaign has spanned industries including banking, insurance, state-backed business and sports.
State broadcaster CCTV reported that a former high-ranking official of a state-owned oil and gas giant had been arrested on suspicion of bribery.
The same day, the anti-corruption agency announced that an investigation was underway against the former head of the state tobacco monopoly's economic operations office.
Late last month, a former deputy chairman of the country's banking regulator was sentenced to life in prison, state media reported. /BGNES
