China's National Audit Office recently announced the results of its latest audit on the post-quake reconstruction projects in Sichuan. It found that the construction of some office buildings violated the reconstruction standards and had wasted taxpayers' money, says an article on Xinhuanet. Excerpts:

Among the 939 projects with a planned investment of about 203 billion yuan ($32 billion), 63 projects are in violation of standards and procedures, for instance, 16 projects violated bidding and tendering procedures. However, the most serious problem was the construction of luxurious office buildings.

According to the standard set by the National Development and Reform Commission, offices for government officials at ministerial level should be within a maximum of 54 square meters, and offices for officials at county level should be no more than 20 square meters.

It turns out that many of the offices for officials rebuilt in the quake-stricken area are well above the established standards.

For example, one single person county office was found to be 66 square meters. In stark contrast, many projects directly related to people's livelihoods, such as the reconstruction of primary schools, do not measure up.

The construction of luxurious office buildings actually takes root in officials' pursuit of political achievement, greed for interests and their untamed desire for pleasure.

For the time being, offenders have not paid their due price and have only been punished with suspensions and public criticism.

Misuse of public money for the construction of luxurious offices should not go unpunished or under-punished. Offenders should be severely punished so that they realize what they have done is a waste of public funds.