Quoting an overseas Chinese media outlet on Feb. 14, Hong Kong’s Apple Daily stated that an insider revealed that all nine members of the Politburo Standing Committee have agreed to assign a special task force to investigate Bo Xilai, the Party head of Chongqing in southwestern China whose former police chief is now apparently giving evidence against him. The investigation team includes He Guoqiang, the Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), and Zhou Yongkang, the Secretary of the Central Political and Legislative Committee.
Apple Daily’s report said that according to Mingjing, a Chinese political news website, an insider with information about the CCDI and the Central Propaganda Department, said that eight of the nine members of the Politburo Standing Committee are determined to open an investigation on Bo Xilai. However, one was not so willing due to his family’s huge economic interests in Chongqing City and Sichuan Province—eventually he reluctantly agreed to the plan.
The report did not name the person, but out of the nine members, only He Guoqiang and Zhou Yongkang have worked in Chongqing or Sichuan before.
The report said that former CCP General Secretary Jiang Zemin also agreed that Bo should be investigated, claiming, “to give the Party and the people an explanation.” The nine Politburo members agreed that the investigation should follow the Party’s internal procedures, and therefore Bo will maintain his post for now.
The report cited the insider as saying that the possibility of Bo entering the Politburo Standing Committee is zero, and it’s now game over for Bo. “What is on the minds of these top leaders is how they can get rid of Bo and still save the Party’s face,” the insider said.
Zhou Yongkang and Bo Xilai
Overseas Chinese media Boxun reported that Beijing is now investigating to determine who informed Bo Xilai of the visit to the U.S. Consulate in Chengdu by Wang Lijun, who had been Bo’s right-hand man and the head of Chongqing’s police and a vice mayor.
Wang had believed Bo meant to assassinate him and fled to the U.S. Consulate. Wang left the Consulate under the protection of officials from Beijing. He is now being investigated by CCDI and, based on remarks he made condemning Bo when he left the U.S. Consulate, is thought to be eager to provide information about Bo.
Authorities in Chengdu and Chongqing learned the news of Wang’s being at the Consulate only after Beijing authorities notified them, according to a report by The New Century Weekly magazine published by Caixin on Feb. 13.
After Wang entered the U.S. Consulate, the Consulate informed the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, which then reported to the top leaders in the central government and the high officials of the Political and Legislative Committee, according to Boxun.
Speculation is that the informer could be a secretary working for either the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, or for the Political and Legislative Committee, or for the nine Politburo Standing Committee members.
After the Chongqing incident, Zhou Yongkang’s name frequently appeared in media reports. Zhou had previously and publicly supported Bo’s “singing red songs and hitting the black” campaigns—Bo instituted singing Maoist era songs promoting communism (“singing red songs”) and also launched what was said to be an anti-mafia campaign (“hitting the black”).
On Feb. 9, the Chongqing Daily quoted Zhou on the front page to defend Bo’s “hitting the black” campaign. AFP quoted a source as saying that Zhou Yongkang approved Wang Lijun’s dismissal as Chongqing police chief.
Bo Xilai has turned his back on his close ally Wang Lijun. It looks like Jiang Zemin and his close ally Zhou Yongkang have now also turned on Bo.
“Now Bo has become a big political pie from which many people want to get a piece for themselves,” an insider from the CCDI told Mingjing.
Read the original Chinese article.
Friends Read Free