Former Xinjiang official expelled from China’s Communist Party over corruption allegations
- Anti-graft watchdog says Ren Hua’s case has been handed over to the judicial body
- Former deputy chairwoman of regional government accused of profiting from illegal lending and taking bribes
Ren Hua, who was deputy chairwoman of Xinjiang’s regional government, has had her case handed over to the judicial body to prepare for trial, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said on its website.
“Ren reaped huge profits from illegal lending, taking advantage of … entities or individuals within her administration or service sphere,” the anti-corruption agency said, according to the report.
She also used her position “to seek benefits for others in terms of enterprise operation, project contracting and land transfer, and illegally accepted huge amounts of money and property in return”, it said.
02:49
The far-reaching powers of China’s new anti-corruption 'super agency'
Ren had been in charge of propaganda and education in Xinjiang.
According to the Xinhua report, Ren is accused of engaging in “superstitious activities” and accepting bribes in the form of expensive club memberships, extravagant banquets and luxury beauty treatments.
“The nature of her crimes is serious and she deserves severe punishment,” the commission was quoted as saying.
Bekri was the governor of Xinjiang before he was promoted to vice-chairman of the National Development and Reform Commission in Beijing in 2014. He took the helm of the National Energy Administration four years later and had been given a ministerial rank before he was sacked and investigated by the anti-corruption agency.
Ren, who is from the eastern province of Shandong, studied Chinese language and literature at Xinjiang University and has spent her entire 35-year political career in the region.
She started as a clerk in the general office of the region’s party committee in 1986. A decade later, Ren was appointed propaganda chief in the capital Urumqi, where she reported to the city’s party chief at the time, Li Zhi.
Li was jailed for 12 years in 2016 for taking 13.19 million yuan in bribes.
Since the start of the year, Xinjiang’s regional corruption watchdog has also detained former deputy mayor of Urumqi Li Wei, former deputy director of the region’s transport department Su Biao, and former deputy commissioner of Aksu prefecture Gao Keping.
