China's Chongqing renews attacks on disgraced former leaders
Criticism of Bo Xilai and Sun Zhengcai comes as the Chinese government stresses the importance of cadres’ discipline and strictly toeing the Communist Party line
The government of the southwestern Chinese city of Chongqing renewed its attacks on two of its disgraced former leaders on Monday, saying one had set up an “independent kingdom” while the other was a lazy deceiver.
Chongqing, one of China’s most important cities, is perhaps best known outside China for its association with its one-time party boss, Bo Xilai, once himself a contender for top leadership before he was jailed for life in 2013 in a dramatic corruption scandal.
Another of its party chiefs, Sun Zhengcai, was sacked in July after he was accused of corruption. Sun, who has yet to face a court, had also been seen as a contender for promotion to the highest echelons of power in China.
Chongqing is now run by Chen Miner, a close ally of President Xi Jinping, who has made fighting deeply ingrained corruption a cornerstone of his administration. Chen has vowed to root out graft in the city.
The official Chongqing Daily said in a front-page commentary there could be no excuses for ignoring party instructions, especially on party discipline issues.
“Bo Xilai raised his own flag, started something new in order to be different and set up an independent kingdom,” the paper wrote, in apparent reference to his “Chongqing model” policy of more equal growth and flashy infrastructure projects.