What’s new: A former vice chairman of the standing committee of the regional people's congress of Guangxi Zhuang autonomous region has been placed under graft probe by the country’s top anti-corruption watchdogs.
Zhang Xiulong, 65, is suspected of “serious violations of discipline and law” — a euphemism for corruption, according to a one-line statement from the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
Zhang is the first high-level official from Guangxi being investigated since the party’s National Congress was held in October 2022. He is also the 38th centrally-administered official to have been caught up in a graft probe this year.
The background: Zhang, a native of Hunan province, spent his entire career in South China’s Guangxi since he began working at the age of 17. He served in roles including the mayor of Chongzuo and Guilin as well as party chief of Laibin city.
He became the vice chairman of the provincial political advisory group of Guangxi in 2013 and served as deputy head of the people’s government of the region from 2015 to 2018. He then became the head of the region’s people’s congress standing committee before leaving the role in January 2022.
Zhang’s last known public appearance was in March 2023, when he attended a local specialty town construction project in Laibin as a member of the party committee of Guangxi, according to a report from the region’s forestry department.
Contact reporter Kelly Wang (jingzhewang@caixin.com) and editor Bertrand Teo (bertrandteo@caixin.com)
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