Former Chinese navy official suspected of violating law and discipline sacked as NPC deputy
- Song Xue, served as deputy chief of the Chinese navy’s equipment department and was involved in test flights of the J-15 fighter
- Other PLA officers have been disqualified as NPC deputies in recent year but Song is the first declared by authorities as suspected of breaking the law
China’s former deputy chief of staff of the navy is suspected of “serious violation of discipline and law” and has been disqualified from the national legislature, authorities announced.
Song Xue, a deputy of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) to the National People’s Congress since 2018, was stripped off his NPC deputy position through the navy’s internal election and removal process on April 8. Therefore, his status as a national representative was terminated, the NPC said on its website on Thursday.
The statement did not give details of the violations Song was suspected to committed or the progress of any investigation into his case.
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However, being removed from the national legislature means he no longer has NPC deputy criminal immunity or the right not to be arrested or put on trial without special permission, according to Chinese law.
Song, 62, was a naval rear admiral and former deputy chief of the Chinese navy’s equipment department.
He was also the deputy commander during take-off and landing test flights of the navy’s J-15 fighter when the first Chinese made carrier-based fighter was put through its paces on the Liaoning aircraft carrier in 2012.
Before and after becoming an NPC deputy, he often spoke to the media about the navy’s equipment development, such as construction projects relating to the aircraft carrier, and the commander chain of Liaoning after it was commissioned.