A powerful swing, the swish of a titanium club and the sweet crisp smack as it connects with a white dimpled ball. Golf, the sport associated with money, business deals and all the finer things in life. And in an age where any competitive edge helps to grease the wheels of business, it would seem that golfing perks are becoming the perfect vehicle for corrupt government officials to enter the world of luxury.

It is something Wang Yushi, a member of the political advisory body of east China's Jiangsu Province, wants to investigate. He recently submitted a proposal suggesting procuratorates probe membership lists of golf clubs to find civil servants who could probably not afford the high membership fees were it not for the fact that they were taking bribes.

Wang has advised that the Communist Party's discipline inspection commissions and other supervisory bodies should investigate government officials who belong to golf clubs, with particular emphasis on the source of such membership payments. If necessary, Wang said, procuratorates should step in to identify cases of bribery.

Currently, golf is one of the most expensive sports in China. An individual membership in some top clubs requires a minimum of 600,000 yuan, while corporate membership can be as high as 2.64 million yuan. In major cities like Beijing and Shanghai, it costs an average of 1,500 to 2,000 yuan to play one game. China's official per-capita national income at the end of August 2006 was just $1,740, less than 14,000 yuan.

Despite these exorbitant fees it is not uncommon to find civil servants and government officials cruising the delicately manicured fairways. In the past, corruption cases have been exposed with "golf" bribes involved. Hao Heping, former Director of the Department of Medical Devices at China's State Food and Drug Administration, was convicted of taking bribes and illegally possessing guns. He received a 15-year sentence. It is reported that Hao would fly over the country's top golf courses, make his choice from the air, and then put himself in a position to take bribes to cover the membership fees, which amounted to 500,000 yuan, at least half of the money he had extorted.

Some people may argue that there are occasions when civil servants have to play golf to socialize with foreign business people or officials to strengthen rapport. However, others question the necessity of this and the public is calling for more self-disciplined officials and government action to crack down on mounting corruption.

However, there is still a question of whether Wang's suggestion is really practical, since bribes can vary from officials being given exclusive club membership, expensive golf clubs or use of club facilities and in some cases false names or even unregistered memberships are given. It requires a lot of manpower and time to investigate the power-for-cash deals behind them.

Ultimately, it is widely recognized both in China and internationally that surveillance and monitoring of those in positions of power should be the top priority in any anti-corruption campaign. It is the best way to prevent abuse of power.

Scandals uncovered

Zhang Dongyang (www.gmw.cn): Some 2,000 people regularly play golf in south China's Hainan Province, and quite a number of these are reportedly officials or local Party leaders. A high-end leisure club in east China's Jiangsu Province admitted that civil servants are its major clients.