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1st LD-Writethru: Senior executive of Baosteel sacked for breaking frugality rules

Xinhua, September 9, 2015 Adjust font size:

Zhao Kun, vice general manager of Baosteel Group, has been dismissed for breaking Party frugality rules, the top discipline inspection agency announced Wednesday.

Zhao was found to have spent company money on expensive accommodation, dinners and personal entertainment, said the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) of the Communist Party of China (CPC) in a press release.

Zhao was also dismissed from his post as president of Guangdong Shaoguan Steel Co. Ltd, a subsidiary of Baosteel in south China's Guangdong Province.

According to the CCDI, Zhao booked villas at company expense when attending company meetings in August and December 2013. During these meetings, he drank expensive imported alcohol, smoked cigars and allowed his subordinates to go sightseeing, also at the expense of the company.

In June 2013 and March 2014, Zhao spent about 49,200 yuan (about 8,000 U.S. dollars) of company money on reception. He visited a private club in Guangzhou city in May and September 2014 and played golf at the expense of shareholders of Shaoguan Steel in May 2013 and April 2014.

He was also found to have accepted cigars from his subordinates six times since 2013. A box of these cigars was worth between 260 and 900 yuan.

His dismissal has been approved by the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission.

Baosteel is a state-owned enterprise with more than 130,000 employees and a revenue of 303 billion yuan in 2013. It is the world's third largest iron and steel firm in terms of revenue and one of the 2015 Fortune Global 500.

State-owned firms are no exception to strict implementation of Party rules, the statement stressed.

The CCDI said Zhao ignored the Party leadership's repeated warnings and did not stop his wrongdoing even after the leadership issued frugality rules. Being a senior executive of a state-owned enterprise, Zhao was expected to have shown self-discipline, but neglected this responsibility with a detrimental effect on his staff.

The CCDI specifically asked Party organs at State-owned firms to step up management and supervision of senior executives and apply Party rules strictly. "Even now, some executives of state-owned firms continue to ignore the central leadership's orders," it warned, underlining the imperative that senior executives must set an example in following rules.

Frugality rules are a priority of discipline inspection and the more recent the wrongdoing, the harsher the punishment will be, the statement said.

The agency expressly stated its desire to send a strong signal to state-owned firms through severe punishment for violators to ensure complete implementation of frugality rules. Endi