From January to June, 21 provincial and ministerial-level officials, 1,237 department-level officials, 10,000 county-level officials, 34,000 township-level officials, and 38,000 ordinary officials were investigated, according to the country's top anti-graft watchdog's records.

Whether it is the number of cases disclosed or the number of officials given disciplinary punishment, the intensive investigations launched in the past six months demonstrate the firm and clear determination of the authorities to combat corruption in an all-round way.

Only with perseverance in the fight against corruption can the country continue to address both the symptoms and root causes of corruption, ensure honest and clean governance, and long-term social peace and stability.

Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012, great achievements have been made in the fight against corruption, but some cases remain unaddressed, while new cases are getting added to the list.

At the same time, with the intertwining of political and economic problems, the overlapping of traditional corruption and new types of corruption, the country faces the risk of losing whatever it has gained in the battle against corruption if the efforts slacken even a bit.

Strengthening the supervision of power in the hands of chief officials and key groups remains the key to building a clean government. Only by starting with leading officials and encouraging these "key minority" people to take the lead in safeguarding the authority of the system and set an example can a strong deterrence be generated. The number of provincial and ministerial-level officials punished in the first half of this year is a reflection of the fact that the discipline inspection and supervision organs have strengthened supervision over key officials.

To enforce strict control over the "key minority", the country must also upgrade effective practices to institutional norms, and leave no room for abuse or misuse of power. In June, the top authorities issued a document, making clear provisions on the applicable objects and circumstances, work measures and discipline requirements for leading cadres' spouses, children and their spouses in running businesses.

With the continuous improvement of its institutional mechanisms, it is clear that China will improve the efficiency of corruption control, resolve both symptoms and root causes of corruption, and finally win its firm and protracted war against corruption.