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The Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI), China’s top anti-corruption watchdog, announced on Sunday that Li Chongxi, leader of Sichuan Province’s Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), is currently under investigation for “serious violations of discipline and law” which is a euphemism for corruption.
The investigation also means that Li has been removed as chairman of the CPPCC. Li’s last public appearance was on Dec. 27 when he presided over the 14th Meeting of the Eleventh Sichuan Provincial CPPCC Leadership Conference. At the conference, Li emphasized the need to implement the policy decisions made during the Third Plenary Session of the 18th Party Congress last month.
He also spoke of the plans that the CPPCC has for the next year and its determination to improve itself and the services it provides. The CPPCC is a political advisory body that consults with the national and provincial government and legislatures on matters of law and policy. While it does not have any powers of administration, it does have deep and wide influence on policy.
Interestingly, Li himself had previously worked in the same department that is now investigating him. From 1982 to 1992, Li served as the deputy director for the Sichuan Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection (SPCDI). In May 2002, he was appointed as party secretary to the SPCDI, a position he concurrently held while also serving as deputy secretary of Sichuan Province.
According to sources familiar to the situation, the investigation most likely stems from Li's economic problems or due to his connection with the SPCDI and its investigation into officials and mining projects in Sichuan. Sources also said that the investigations into Li had been going on for a while.
