Probe of disgraced mayor over, Shenzhen chief says
Shenzhen party boss Wang Rong reassured party cadres at a plenary meeting that investigations into disgraced former mayor Xu Zongheng were over, even though all six of the city's district heads have been replaced in a reshuffle.
There has been strong suspicion that more Shenzhen officials were involved in Xu's case after the reshuffle, begun in June, saw almost all the district party bosses and district government chiefs replaced.
Wang told cadres at a city Communist Party committee conference that officials questioned by police had merely been providing information about Xu's corruption case rather than having been involved in it.
'There were still some clues that the police needed to verify with a few comrades when investigations into Xu Zongheng's graft case came to an end, but that's all. There's no other investigation over new corruption cases,' yesterday's Nanfang Daily quoted Wang as saying. 'Even the verification procedure is finished or almost finished now. There won't be further investigations of individuals after verification. So comrades shouldn't indulge in suspicious conjecture with each other and those who have been invited for investigation shouldn't have any misgivings.'
Shenzhen reshuffled its district heads after Xu was placed under investigation in June last year, and at least three district heads allegedly involved in his case were arrested.
The latest arrest, that of a deputy Longgang district head, was made in August.
Former Nanshan district head Liu Qingsheng replaced arrested Futian district party boss Li Ping after he was detained on April 29.
Water resources bureau chief Jiang Zunyu replaced arrested Longgang party boss Yu Weiliang after he was sacked and made the subject of a graft probe in October last year.
Almost all party bosses and government chiefs of the other districts have been replaced since June this year.
The city announced a reshuffle involving three major positions this week.
On Monday, it announced a new district head for Longgang, while a new vice-mayor was appointed on Tuesday. On Wednesday, the authorities said they would replace the head of Baoan district after the incumbent decided to quit owing to health problems.
