Two former school officials in Meishan, Sichuan province, were sentenced to prison for embezzlement and bribery in May after an investigation uncovered extensive financial misconduct at Meishan Checheng High School, the Sichuan Provincial Discipline Inspection Commission has disclosed.

The school's former principal, Zou Yiqiang, and former vice-principal, Xu Lieping, were found guilty of exploiting their positions for personal gain. According to official reports, the pair embezzled over 6.8 million yuan ($950,000) through various schemes, including receiving kickbacks from vendors and extorting funds from companies selling educational materials.

In 2018, Meishan Checheng High School was rocked by a corruption scandal involving its leadership. Its principal and key administrative staff members were dismissed and convicted of various crimes, including the unauthorized distribution of bonuses and embezzlement of public funds.

To address the fallout, Zou, then deputy director of the Dongpo district education and sports bureau in Meishan, was appointed as the new principal. Tasked with restoring order, Zou earned the nickname "firefighting principal". However, instead of extinguishing the flames of corruption, he fanned them by forming a close-knit circle of loyalists, turning the school into his personal fiefdom, the commission investigation showed.

Central to Zou's corrupt enterprise was his relationship with Xu, a former colleague from Yongshou High School. Zou had long recognized Xu's loyalty and capability, bringing him to Meishan Checheng High School in 2018 and promoting him to vice-principal the following year. Xu was entrusted with overseeing crucial areas such as procurement and safety, effectively becoming Zou's right-hand man.

Together, the two officials systematically exploited the school's resources, the commission found. Zou, eager to secure loyalty, began by illegally distributing "holiday bonuses" to staff, despite the school's strained finances. He also established slush funds and found ways to generate illicit income, often using Xu to channel the funds.

Over the next four years, Zou and Xu turned nearly every facet of the school's operations into a revenue stream. They received kickbacks from vendors supplying the school cafeteria and store, embezzled profits from the school's printing services, and extorted money from companies selling educational materials and promoting student milk programs. In total, the pair pocketed over 1.4 million yuan in kickbacks.

By 2022, Zou began to suspect that their activities had attracted the attention of investigators. He ordered Xu and others to destroy incriminating documents and formed a pact with Xu to resist any organizational scrutiny. Despite those efforts, their crimes were exposed.

Investigations revealed that Zou had embezzled over 6.8 million yuan, with 3.5 million yuan directly linked to his collaboration with Xu. In October last year, both men were placed under disciplinary review and criminal investigation by the district's discipline inspection and supervision commissions.

Zou and Xu were expelled from the Communist Party of China in February and removed from their positions. In May, Zou was sentenced to seven years in prison and fined 650,000 yuan, while Xu received a six-and-a-half-year sentence and a 500,000 yuan fine.

Contact the writers at huangzhiling@chinadaily.com.cn

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