The Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee recently issued a set of guidelines on intensified supervision on chief officials and leadership teams at all levels, in a bid to further strengthen the Party and enhance discipline.

This is the first such measure adopted by the CPC particularly aimed at the oversight of chief officials and leadership teams, also known as the "key few."

Deemed a crucial step in cracking the hard nut of supervision on chief officials and members of the leadership teams, the document stressed that the intensity of supervision on officials should be commensurate with their duties and positions.

Supervision of the chief officials is of paramount importance to intraparty oversight as their violation of disciplinary rules and laws can entail serious corruption.

Correspondingly, the guidelines prescribe specific stipulations on enhancing supervision on the chief officials while stressing disciplinary supervision on those at a lower level of the hierarchy.

It also calls for voluntary acceptance of supervision by chief officials, asking them to take the lead in engaging in criticism and self-criticism and set examples of self-discipline.

Highlighting political oversight, the guidelines lay out five criteria for scrutinizing chief officials and leadership teams including their loyalty to the Party and conforming with the Party's nature and purpose.

Improving Party conduct and promoting integrity must start with officials, particularly those in leading positions, said an official with the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission, the country's top anti-graft body.

Peer oversight among members of the leadership teams can yield twice the result with half the effort. According to the official, the guidelines propose specific measures for members of the leadership teams to carry out regular oversight on each other.

The document also raises requirements for disciplinary inspection authorities and Party institutions to leverage their advantages for supplementing the supervision work, the official added.