Residents line up to receive nucleic acid tests on Friday in Shanghai. The city entered a phased "pause" starting from Friday to April 5. Photo: VCG

 
A state enterprise official and a hospital director in Shanghai have been dismissed from their administrative posts and positions within the Communist Party of China (CCP) for shirking responsibility and performing badly in fighting the COVID-19 outbreak. 

The Shanghai branch of the CCP discipline inspection commission and the Shanghai supervision commission announced the move on Thursday, urging all party members to do their utmost in the battle against Omicron with more determined, thorough and rapid measures.

According to the notice, Li Shuifei was the general manager and the deputy party secretary of the emergency department of Hongqiao company, which is a subsidiary of the Shanghai Airport Authority.

Li neglected and shirked his responsibility when an employee at the airport tested positive on March 24. Li's buck-passing behavior delayed the transport process and resulted in adverse effects, said the notice.

As the director and deputy party secretary of Huangpu District Mental Health Center, Zhou Baoguo failed to fulfill his responsibilities in controlling the pandemic and is under further investigation at present. Zhou's lax and poor management led to multiple patients and workers in the health center being infected by COVID-19. 

New infections in Shanghai have reached record levels. According to the national health commission, the city reported a total of 322 confirmed COVID-19 cases and 19,660 asymptomatic infections on Wednesday.