Outspoken Chinese tycoon comes under fire for attacking Xi Jinping’s lecture to the media
News site affiliated with state says former property mogul Ren Zhiqiang is trying to topple Communist Party and establish Western-style government
An outspoken tycoon has come under fire for his comments about Chinese President Xi Jinping’s exhortation to media last week that it must show absolute loyalty to the Communist Party.
Ren Zhiqiang, who stepped down from his Hua Yuan Property company in 2014, said on Weibo shortly after Xi toured Xinhua, People’s Daily and CCTV on Friday that the media should serve the people. Ren stressed that the news outfits were funded by taxpayers’ money, and so should serve the public, rather than the leadership.
READ MORE: China’s top party mouthpieces pledge ‘absolute loyalty’ as president makes rare visits to newsrooms
On Monday morning, a news site affiliated with the Beijing municipal party committee said Ren was spreading “anti-Communist Party” thought.
Ren represented capitalism that sought to topple the party’s rule and establish Western-style constitutionalism on the mainland, said the commentator on Qianlong.com.
Controlling the media through capital ownership was a crucial part of their plan, it said, adding that the tycoon, who is a party member, had “completely” lost his party spirit.
With more than 37 million followers, Ren is a popular figure on social media, where he is known as "Cannon" for his critical and often controversial comments about a host of issues, including housing and income inequality.