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Auditors take PRC agencies to task over creative cash

Call it creative fundraising.

China's government ministries and agencies have concocted myriad ways to take in extra cash, according to a report released yesterday by the National Audit Office.

The title, "Report of Audit Results," scarcely does justice to its contents.

A copy of the report posted on the audit office's Web site outlines numerous ingenious ways that state agencies have allegedly used to raise extra cash. The report does not indicate whether the practices are illegal.

But the auditors took the National Development and Reform Commission, China's economic planning agency, and other government departments to task for charging companies for politically useful "endorsements" or sponsorships.

Such charges by the commission alone amounted to 13.4 million yuan (US$1.8 million) last year, the report said.

The agency accused the Foreign Ministry of charging 62 million yuan in excess fees for visas, noting that the average amount charged was twice the cost.

The state-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission was singled out for alleged misuse of 51.9 million yuan in project funds, while the Public Security Bureau misused 6.3 million yuan in public funds, the report said.

Many of the abuses reported involved misuse of funds or failure to report funds raised.

The audits were carried out in the first three months of this year.

China's audit office regularly reports huge losses because of corruption and other abuses by government offices and state-run companies.
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