In Depth: How Lax Oversight Opened the Door to Corruption in Poverty Relief

A 2023 corruption crackdown in Qinghai province, Northwest China, exposed significant embezzlement and bribery surrounding programs intended to alleviate rural poverty. At least five officials were implicated, revealing that anti-poverty initiatives created lucrative opportunities for abuse, ultimately diverting millions of yuan intended for the poor [para. 1][para. 2].

A central figure in the case was Ma Zhengjun, who served as deputy director of Qinghai’s Rural Revitalization Bureau until his retirement in 2022. He was convicted of colluding with businesspeople and officials to embezzle funds from a provincial program aimed at training villagers for entrepreneurship, and accepted over 5.1 million yuan ($708,000) in bribes. Ma received a 19-year prison sentence as a result [para. 3][para. 4]. According to the court, Ma exploited his role to orchestrate a scheme, working between 2017 and 2019 with subordinates and outside contacts. The case originated with a bureau staffer facilitating her boyfriend's access to a lucrative training contract, which led to the diversion of approximately 6.2 million yuan meant for impoverished communities [para. 4].

China has made substantial progress in poverty alleviation, officially removing the country’s last nine impoverished counties from the national poverty list in November 2020, marking the culmination of an eight-year campaign. Qinghai itself declared the elimination of absolute poverty in April 2020 [para. 5]. However, these successes may have also bred complacency and corruption, as highlighted by the embezzlement case. The Central Commission for Disciplinary Inspection had already warned of lax oversight in 2019 [para. 6].

The fraudulent scheme took advantage of a 2015 program to train entrepreneurial leaders and young people. Key players included Ma Zhengjun, bureau staffer Jin Yun, businessman Wang, bureau deputy chief Cui Kai, and Ge Yanqing, head of the policy division. To circumvent qualifications, the conspirators brought in Han Zhihao of Haoyu Information Technology as a front; fake attendance records and forged signatures inflated participation by over 1,200 trainees between 2017 and 2019 [para. 7][para. 8][para. 9][para. 10][para. 11][para. 12][para. 13][para. 14][para. 15]. The embezzled funds totaled 6.17 million yuan, with Cui and Ma splitting 1.1 million yuan, and Han receiving over 5 million yuan. The scheme unraveled when increased government scrutiny and audits exposed irregularities [para. 21][para. 22].

A crucial legal question was whether Ma Zhengjun colluded with the others; while all admitted guilt during investigations, they recanted in court, citing coercion. Nonetheless, the court found their testimonies consistent and convicted them as co-conspirators. Sentences ranged from 10 to 10.5 years, with fines up to 550,000 yuan [para. 23][para. 24][para. 25][para. 26].

Ma Zhengjun was also convicted of accepting bribes from officials and businessmen amounting to 5.11 million yuan from 2014 to 2020, including a 1.3 million-yuan payment from Li Qingchuan, vice mayor of Haidong who later became a departmental head and was also convicted in 2024 [para. 34][para. 35][para. 36][para. 37][para. 38][para. 39][para. 40][para. 41][para. 42]. Ma’s defense of coercion was rejected, and he received a combined sentence of 19 years and a 1.5 million yuan fine [para. 43].

The case underscores the opportunities for corruption even within well-intentioned poverty relief programs, especially amid achievement declarations and insufficient oversight [para. 5][para. 6][para. 43]. Ma Fengsheng, another implicated official, was dismissed in January 2025, with the investigation ongoing [para. 44].