Chinese President Hu Jintao on Monday vowed that the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the Chinese Government will wage the fight against corruption with greater determination and more forceful measures as the situation remains "grave."

Addressing a plenary session of the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), the Party's anti-graft body, Hu said all work should be done with the fundamental interests of the majority of the people as the core concern.

Hu, also General Secretary of the CPC Central Committee, said problems that seriously violated the public interest and sparked the most public complaints should be addressed to ensure social justice.

He said efforts were needed to strengthen ties between the Party and the people and to enable the people to play a more active role in fighting corruption.

Hu pledged to "combat graft strictly and punish corrupt officials severely" so as to win trust from the people.

Hu admitted that prominent problems remained in the fight against corruption and efforts to build a clean government, and warned of a "grave situation and arduous tasks."

He called for enhanced supervision and monitoring of the implementation of major central government and Party policies and measures and the promotion of a corruption-free work style among officials.

He called for reinforced efforts to build a system to prevent and punish corruption.

"More efforts should be made to investigate graft in key industries and key posts," he said, stressing the supervision of procedures concerning the promotion of local officials to prevent abuse of power or other corrupt conduct.

Figures from the CCDI show 146,517 officials across China were punished for disciplinary violations last year, including 5,098 leaders at the county head level or above and 804 officials who were referred for prosecution.

Discipline inspection bodies received almost 1.43 million petitions and tip-offs last year and recovered 8.97 billion yuan ($1.35 billion) in economic losses for the state.

"All comrades in the Party must serve the people with all their hearts and use their power to seek benefits for them. Only by doing so can our work earn the most comprehensive and solid foundation among the people and stand the tests of storms and risks," Hu said.

Hu said people-oriented education was needed to guide officials to "willingly stand beside the people, be emotionally close to the people and reply on the people in carrying out their duties."

Hu called for the building of a scientific, democratic and lawful decision-making system that would take the people's benefits and ideas fully into account.

Hu called for unsparing efforts to promote an efficient and legal work style and solve obvious problems concerning people's lives in order to ensure their economic, political, cultural and social rights.

While urging grassroots officials to expand their knowledge and expertise through intensified education, Hu encouraged their superiors to fully understand the difficulties of grassroots work and to take good care of grassroots officials.

Hu called on officials from discipline inspection departments at all levels to set an example and to initiate the people-oriented spirit in their work and fulfil their responsibilities to a higher standard.

He called for improvements in the anti-corruption system in accordance with an amended anti-corruption regulation released last month.

One of the latest CPC moves to battle corruption, the amended regulation adds articles detailing punishments for corrupt officials and sets out penalties for corrupt Party officials who have left their posts or retired.

Along with 118 CCDI members, senior Chinese leaders, including Wu Bangguo, Wen Jiabao, Jia Qinglin, Li Changchun, Xi Jinping and Zhou Yongkang, attended the meeting, which was presided over by He Guoqiang, head of the CPC's anti-graft agency.

(Xinhua News Agency January 10, 2011)