EVEN WITH A NUMBER OF VICE-MINISTER-LEVEL officials and a vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference placed under investigation for abuse of power in recent weeks, and Liu Tienan, former director of the National Energy Administration, sued by prosecutors, the anti-graft campaign will continue with the same momentum until officials have the awareness they need to toe the line when it comes to the exercising of their power.

Every corrupt official has his or her own way of accumulating illicit wealth, but one thing they have in common is the fact that nearly all of them have corrupted their way up the ladder.

Liu Tienan, for example, took advantage of his various positions as the heads of different sections to take bribes and abuse power. But this never stood in the way of his promotion. The same is true of his corrupt counterparts.