Several local government officials in Sanya, a city in south China's Hainan Province, have been called to account for breaches of duty in a series of events, Chinanews.cn reports.
Punishments ranging from "making a public apology" to "removal of duty" were handed out to four officials from the city's agricultural sector for their failure to prevent the "cowpea event" which caused nationwide concerns about food safety, the report said.
In early February, about 3.5 tons of Sanya cowpeas were found contaminated with the poisonous pesticide isocarbophos in Wuhan, capital of Hubei Province. Wuhan officials destroyed the consignment and banned further Hainan-produced cowpeas from entering the city.
Tests on Hainan cowpeas were later carried out nationwide. Toxic cowpeas were also found in Shanghai and 10 other cities in Hubei, Henan, Guangdong, Anhui and Jiangsu provinces.
Eleven other officials from four departments related to Sanya's urban management, state assets management, traffic control and urban sanitation were also punished for their parts in relevant events. |
