[The Epoch Times, November 15, 2023]When Wang Qishan was a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China and Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (2012-2017), he was the main operator of Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption campaign. Within five years, Wang Qishan helped Xi Jinping win over 440 senior officials at the deputy provincial and ministerial level and above, as well as other central management cadres.
Wang Qishan’s “ruthlessness” makes many senior officials frightened. At that time, there was a saying in the CCP official circles: “I would rather see the King of Hell than Lao Wang.” This means that some high-ranking officials would rather die, including jumping from buildings, diving, hanging, or taking poison, than fall into Wang Qishan’s hands.
However, perhaps even Wang Qishan himself did not expect that after he resigned as a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China and Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, and during his tenure as Vice Chairman of the Communist Party of China, two of his former secretaries, Tian Huiyu and Dong Hong, were actually ” “Confirmed” as a serious corrupt element, dismissed from his post, investigated, and thrown into deep prison.
On November 9, the Intermediate Court of Changde City, Hunan Province heard the Tian Huiyu corruption case.
Tian Huiyu was charged with five crimes: bribery, abuse of power by state-owned company personnel, trading on undisclosed information, insider trading, and leaking inside information.
Tian Huiyu’s crime lasted for 25 years (1997-2022).
Wang Qishan served as the president of the People’s Construction Bank of China (renamed China Construction Bank in 1996) from 1994 to 1997. During this period, Tian Huiyu served as Wang Qishan’s secretary.
In the 25 years since he resigned as Wang Qishan’s secretary, Tian Huiyu has been greedy for money in every position.
The prosecutor accused Tian Huiyu of taking bribes of 210 million yuan by taking advantage of his positions as vice president of China Cinda Trust and Investment Company, vice president of the Bank of Shanghai, president of the Beijing Branch of China Construction Bank, and president of China Merchants Bank.
The case will be pronounced at a later date. It is estimated that he will be sentenced to at least life imprisonment.
Dong Hong accepted 460 million yuan in bribes
On January 28, 2022, Dong Hong was sentenced to death by the Qingdao Intermediate Court for accepting a bribe of 460 million yuan, with a two-year suspension of execution, and all personal property was confiscated.
Dong Hong served as Wang Qishan’s chief secretary for a long time.
Wang Qishan landed in Guangdong from Beijing and served as deputy governor of Guangdong Province. One of the major things he did was to preside over the bankruptcy liquidation of Guangdong International Trust and Investment Company. Dong Hong serves as a member of the bankruptcy liquidation team. When Wang Qishan was the Secretary of the Hainan Provincial Party Committee, Dong Hong was the Deputy Secretary-General of the Hainan Provincial Party Committee. When Wang Qishan served as acting mayor and mayor of Beijing, Dong Hong served as deputy secretary-general of the Beijing Municipal Government. When Wang Qishan was the secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Dong Hong was the deputy leader of the Central Inspection Team.
The court found that: from 1999 to 2020, Dong Hong used his position as a member of the bankruptcy and liquidation team of Guangdong International Trust and Investment Company, deputy secretary-general of the Hainan Provincial Committee of the Communist Party of China, deputy secretary-general of the Beijing Municipal Government, deputy director of the Central Literature Research Office, and deputy leader of the Central Inspection Team. He accepted bribes of 463 million yuan for the convenience of his position as a senior official, as well as the convenient conditions created by his authority and status.
Who investigated Tian Huiyu and Dong Hong?
It was investigated when Zhao Leji was secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (2017.10-2022.10). Tian Huiyu was arrested in April 2022; Dong Hong was arrested on October 2, 2020.
Why did Zhao Leji check on Wang Qishan’s two secretaries? First, Xi Jinping asked him to investigate; second, he wanted to investigate himself.
Why does Xi want him to investigate?
Because Xi is worried that Wang Qishan’s “high achievements will shock his master”. Wang Qishan is older and more senior than Xi. He was once a member of the think tank of Zhao Ziyang, then Premier of the State Council of the Communist Party of China. Wang has played a leading role in Xi’s anti-corruption campaign. In addition, Wang has strong abilities, wide connections, and is the son-in-law of Yao Yilin, a former member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China. He has great influence.
If Wang stood up to oppose Xi, Xi couldn’t stand it and had to suppress him.
Although Xi made Wang the vice president of the country during Xi’s second term, the vice president of the country was disgraced.
Back then, Xi and Wang were good friends who slept on the same quilt when they went to the countryside to become educated youths. Today, the friendship between Xi and Wang has disappeared. Xi did not capture Wang, so he was considered “merciful” to Wang. What does Wang think of Xi’s meeting? There may not be any “emotion” at all.
Why is Zhao Leji willing to investigate?
Because Zhao Leji belongs to the Jiang faction headed by Jiang Zemin and Zeng Qinghong. Most of the 440 high-ranking officials investigated by Xi and Wang are members of Jiang’s faction. Jiang’s troops hated Xi and Wang so much that they gnashed their teeth.
Before the 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2017, Jiang sent people to scold Wang Qishan overseas and tried to drive a wedge between Xi and Wang to prevent Wang Qishan from being re-elected as secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. As a result, Wang Qishan really failed to be re-elected as secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. Zhao Leji, a close associate of the Jiang faction, was able to become the Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
After Zhao took office, Xi asked Zhao to “operate” on Wang’s two secretaries, and Zhao would not be polite.
Does Xi Jinping trust Zhao Leji?
distrust. In addition to Xi’s suspicious nature, when Zhao Leji was secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, the case of illegally built villas in Qinling broke out.
Xi Jinping regards the Qinling Mountains as the veins of the dragon. Building a villa on the dragon’s veins will destroy the dragon’s veins. To destroy the Dragon Vein is to destroy the future of Xi. This is something Xi will never tolerate.
Xi Jinping issued instructions six times in five years, requiring the demolition of illegal villas in Qinling. However, Xi’s first five instructions were all fooled by the “soft support and hard resistance” of senior officials of the Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government. One of the reasons is that some illegally built villas were built when Zhao Leji was secretary of the Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee.
In response to the case of illegally built villas in the Qinling Mountains, Xi investigated and dealt with a number of senior officials from the Shaanxi Provincial Party Committee and Provincial Government, and the Xi’an Municipal Party Committee and Municipal Government, many of whom were Zhao Leji’s old subordinates. This is also Xi’s warning to Zhao Leji.
At the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, although Zhao Leji remained a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China and served as chairman of the National People’s Congress, Xi still wanted to hold Zhao down and prevent Zhao from “undue” ideas about the power in his hands.
How to press?
Still the old way. Ask Li Xi, the new secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, to investigate the people promoted by Zhao Leji.
One of the major things Li Xi did after taking office was the so-called “finding of insiders”. So far, dozens of “insiders” have been investigated, most of whom were promoted by Zhao Leji. For example, Luo Yulin, leader of the first inspection team and leader of the third inspection team of the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission Party Committee, is regarded by people familiar with the matter as “one of the few people Zhao Leji can trust.”
The more “conspirators” Li Xicha has, the greater the conflict between Xi and Zhao. If Xi “capsizes”, Zhao will definitely fall out immediately.
Does Li Xi really follow Xi Jinping?
The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection is nominally the CCP’s highest specialized leadership agency for anti-corruption. However, since the CCP’s anti-corruption campaign has never been a true anti-corruption campaign, but a selective anti-corruption campaign, it is a tool used by the most powerful people at the highest level of the CCP to attack political opponents.
Therefore, Li Xi, the current secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, is actually Xi’s helper in purging his political opponents. He dare not not punish whomever Xi wants him to punish.
However, Li Xi also had to face a cruel reality: Xi used Zhao Leji to hold down Wang Qishan, and now he is using him to hold down Zhao Leji. Does Xi really trust him? If he steps down at the end of his five-year term, will Xi use the next secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection to hold him down?
In addition, the whole world knows how suspicious Xi is.
Since Xi became chairman of the Central Military Commission, senior generals in the CCP military have been replaced in a revolving door. Li Shangfu, a member of the Central Military Commission, State Councilor, and Defense Minister who was promoted and re-appointed by Xi, was replaced at Xi’s request; Li Yuchao, commander of the Rocket Force and political commissar of the Rocket Force, who was in charge of short-range, medium-range, long-range and intercontinental missiles carrying nuclear weapons, was promoted and re-appointed by Xi. Xu Zhongbo was replaced as soon as Xi Jinping said he should be replaced.
Xi promoted and re-appointed Li Qiang as the second-ranked figure in the CCP, but also promoted and re-appointed Cai Qi as the de facto second-ranking figure in the party. This is not only a distrust of Li Qiang, but also not necessarily a true trust of Cai Qi.
The fate of Li Qiang’s predecessor, Li Keqiang, made Li Xi have to be extra careful.
When Li Keqiang was a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China and Premier of the State Council, Xi established one committee after another and personally served as the chairman or director of the committee, taking many powers of the State Council into his own hands, making Li Keqiang the most vulnerable prime minister to date.
Li Keqiang was not old enough to retire, but was forced to retire by Xi. Li Keqiang retired only 7 months ago, was the youngest among the Retired Standing Committee, and had the best medical care, but he died mysteriously on October 27 this year.
After Li Keqiang’s death, everything from the media’s reporting of Li Keqiang’s death to the route taken by Li Keqiang’s body to Babaoshan and the farewell ceremony for Li Keqiang’s body revealed abnormalities and strangeness.
These couldn’t help but send shivers down Li Xi’s spine.
Li Xi understood: Xi Jinping couldn’t really trust him.
In particular, Xi has now reached the pinnacle of power, and at the same time, he has become the target of all domestic and foreign affairs of the CCP. There are endless voices at home and abroad criticizing, opposing, and reversing the practice.
Li Xi had to leave a way out for himself and could not truly follow Xi.
Conclusion
Corruption in the CCP officialdom is a common phenomenon. If you really check, almost everyone has a problem.
Regarding Wang Qishan’s two secretaries, Xi could check or not. However, Xi chose to investigate. Because Xi wants to eliminate everyone who threatens his supreme power. This investigation has produced a series of chain reactions. For example, the relationship between Wang Qishan, Zhao Leji, Li Xi and Xi Jinping, the relationship between Li Xi and Zhao Leji, and the relationship between Zhao Leji and Wang Qishan have become very tense.
The greater the force exerted by Xi, the greater the reaction against Xi. Ultimately, Xi may reap the consequences.
Epoch Times first release
Editor in charge: Gao Yi
Tags: Wang Youqun Lets start investigation prosecution Wang Qishans secretaries Tian Huiyu Dong Hong Death penalty
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