BEIJING: China has vowed to ramp up its regulatory crackdown and show “no mercy” against corruption as the ruling Communist Party gears up for a key meeting that could secure President Xi Jinping a third term.

The announcement suggests authorities have no plans to rein in investigations that engulfed China’s tech industry last year or an ongoing hunt for corruption that has brought down high-flying politicians and influential tycoons. The official Xinhua news agency carried a communique from the Communist Party’s discipline watchdog late on Thursday saying authorities will punish any corruption connected to “the disorderly expansion of capital” in various industries and “cut the link between power and capital”.

Beijing must “show no mercy to those who engage in political gangs, small circles and vested interests within the party,” the statement added, while warning of further investigation into corruption in the financial sector and state-owned enterprises.

Critics argue China’s anti-corruption campaign has served as a way to remove political enemies since Xi came to power in 2013.

Published in Dawn, January 22nd, 2022