A Beijing vice-mayor with a central role in the Chinese capital’s preparations for the 2008 Olympics has been fired for alleged corruption.

The surprise dismissal of Liu Zhihua, head of the Beijing city government commission responsible for Olympics-related construction, marked one of the highest-level graft scandals to hit the capital since the toppling of former mayor Chen Xitong in the mid-1990s.

It will also fuel concerns about the extent of possible official corruption amid an estimated $40bn (€32bn) in spending on public works, environmental protection and stadium-building ahead of the 2008 games.

No details have been released of Mr Liu’s alleged offences, but the official Xinhua news agency said he was under investigation over violations of Communist party and government employee rules.

In dismissing the vice-mayor, Beijing’s People’s Congress, or council, had concluded that “the reality of his mistakes is clear and the evidence incontrovertible”, Xinhua said.

“Vice-Mayor Liu Zhihua was relieved of his position because of his corrupt and degenerate ways,” the agency said. “The circumstances were serious and their consequences vile.”

Mr Liu is now likely to face expulsion from the Communist party before being handed over to judicial authorities.

Corruption is widespread in China, where senior figures in the government and ruling Communist party often wield enormous bureaucratic influence with only rudimentary oversight.

Less than two years ago, a senior Beijing official in charge of road building was toppled for allegedly taking “enormous bribes many times” to help others win advantage from public works. But many Chinese observers say that public revelations of graft at high levels can also reflect political rivalries as well as relative degrees of honesty.

While Beijing has pledged to make the 2008 games the “cleanest” staged, much of the funding and construction process surrounding key infrastructure projects remains deeply opaque. 

Mr Liu, 57, had vowed last year that officials responsible for venue construction would be “honest in performing their official duties and to carry this principle through to the end”.

His dismissal came without warning. Just last Thursday, Mr Liu was named head of the committee preparing for municipal sporting games to be held next month.