Shanghai leader stripped of power

The top leader of China's financial hub Shanghai was dismissed yesterday for alleged corruption, the highest official to be brought down in more than a decade during the country's intensive anti-graft campaign.

Chen Liangyu, Shanghai secretary of the Communist Party of China (CPC), also had his membership of the Party's powerful Political Bureau and Central Committee suspended, Xinhua News Agency said.

Citing a CPC Politburo decision on Sunday, Xinhua said Chen, 59, was "involved in the misuse of Shanghai's social security funds."

The report said the CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection is investigating Chen's case.

Shanghai Mayor Han Zheng was appointed acting Party chief by the CPC Central Committee.

Xinhua said the Politburo met on Sunday to discuss a preliminary report on the investigation into Chen presented by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.

According to the preliminary investigation, Chen also committed other serious discipline violations, "such as seeking economic interests for illegal entrepreneurs, giving unprincipled protection to his staff who severely violated laws and discipline, and pursuing abnormal benefits for family members by taking advantage of his official posts."

"This has created an odious political impact,'' the Politburo reportedly said.

Chen's dismissal was hailed as an example of the Party's determination to build a clean Party and to fight corruption.

"Whenever an official violates discipline and laws, regardless of name or rank, he or she will be severely punished," Xinhua quoted the Politburo meeting as saying.

Chen's disgrace came amid a widening probe into Shanghai's handling of pension fund investments.

On August 11, Zhu Junyi, director of the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Labour and Social Security was sacked for taking bribes and siphoning money from social security funds.

The scandal, which reportedly involved at least one third of a 10 billion yuan (US$1.2 billion) city pension fund, has led to the removal of Qin Yu, former head of Shanghai's Baoshan District.

Earlier Xinhua reports said hundreds of investigators sent by the central government are stationed in Shanghai to probe the pension fund scandal.

On August 15 this year, Chen himself pledged to combat corruption at a meeting of senior city Party officials following Zhu's dismissal.

"This is a period prone to corruption,'' Chen was quoted as saying by the Liberation Daily. "We must remain ever alert in the struggle against graft.''

The last Politburo member to be axed for corruption was former Beijing Party secretary Chen Xitong, who resigned in mid-1995 and was sentenced to 16 years in prison.

Chen Liangyu was last seen in public on Friday night at the Shanghai Golden Grand Prix Athletics meeting, watching Olympic hero Liu Xiang triumph in the 110 metres hurdles.

He was born in October 1946 in Ningbo city, East China's Zhejiang Province.

He graduated from the Architecture Department of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) Institute of Logistics Engineering where he had majored in architecture. He joined the CPC in April 1980.

Chen assumed the posts of Secretary of the Shanghai Municipal Committee of the CPC and member of the Political Bureau of the CPC Central Committee in 2002.

Tens of thousands of online comments flooded sina.com, the country's largest news portal, welcoming Chen Liangyu's sacking.

"We give our firm support for President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao in their battle against corruption," one anonymous netizen said.

"Justice still prevails in our country," another wrote. "Such news is even more encouraging than the launch of Shenzhou VI (manned spacecraft)."

Professor Gao Xinmin of the CPC Central Party School said Chen's case sounded another alarm in the country's anti-corruption bid.

"Corruption involving such a senior official as Chen suggests our fight against graft still has a long way to go," she told China Daily.

"We need tougher and more effective measures to supervise top local officials whose power seems to have become boundless." The professor stressed that the Party should focus on improving government governance mechanisms and selection procedures of senior officials in a bid to root out corruption.

Officials sacked for corruption in recent months

June 11: Beijing vice-mayor Liu Zhihua sacked by the Standing Committee of Beijing Municipal People's Congress for corruption and dissolute behaviour.

Late June: People's Liberation Army navy deputy commander Wang Shouye dismissed by the Central Military Commission on charges of economic crimes. He was also expelled from the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC), China's top legislature, on June 29.

August 11: Zhu Junyi, director of the Shanghai Municipal Bureau of Labour and Social Security, sacked for taking bribes and siphoning money from social security funds.

August 24: Qin Yu, director of Shanghai Baoshan District, sacked and put under investigation for grave breach of discipline.

August 25: He Minxu, a vice-governor of eastern Anhui Province, dismissed from his duties and awaiting trial for taking bribes and engaging in illegal land deals.

August 27: Li Baojin, chief prosecutor of Tianjin, dismissed on charges of severe breach of discipline.

Source: China Daily