Comedian Zhou Benshan ‘putting the final touches’ on his delegate’s proposal

Comedian Zhao Benshan seems undeterred by the controversy around him. According to mainland media, he has been burning the midnight oil putting together his delegate’s proposal for the national political advisory body’s annual meeting.

Zhao, a flamboyant character said to be well-connected with senior officials, is a household name. But for the past year, as President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption drive intensified, Zhao has kept an unusually low profile, fuelling rumours that he may have been under investigation.

The West China City Daily in Chengdu, Sichuan province reported that Zhao had been busy preparing for his proposals on grassroots rural issues. His assistant Liu Shuangping was seen picking up Zhao’s delegate passes and confirmed his attendance at the event.

Zhao’s connections and private fortune – he owned a high-end club in Beijing that was said to have been put out of business by the Party’s austerity drive – have made him a topic of speculation over who will be hauled up next in Xi’s campaign. Rumours that he was in trouble with the authorities came after his conspicuous absence from a high-profile cultural symposium in Beijing in October that was chaired by Xi.