On February 6, 2026, four vice-ministerial level officials of the Chinese Communist Party and vice-chairmen of the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) were absent from the CPPCC Chairman’s meeting. The officials include Politburo member and Minister of the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee Shi Taifeng, Deputy Chairman of the Central Committee of the China Association for Promoting Democracy Qin Boyong, former Chairman of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Chen Wu, and Chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Region CPPCC Pabala Gyalrong Jie.
Shi Taifeng has been absent from high-level CPPCC meetings twice in the past half month. Qin Boyong has been absent from high-level CPPCC meetings for over four months continuously, with previous reports suggesting that he is under investigation. Chen Wu, the former deputy of Lantian Li, who is the head of the government of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, was absent from CPPCC Chairman’s meetings twice after Lantian Li was removed from office in May 2025.
On February 6, 2026, the 46th Chairman’s meeting of the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC was held in Beijing.
According to official media reports, Politburo Standing Committee member and Chairman of the CPPCC Wang Huning presided over and delivered a speech at the meeting. Vice Chairmen of the CPPCC Hu Chunhua, Shen Yueyue, He Houkai, and Su Hui spoke at the meeting, while Vice Chairman of the CPPCC and Secretary-General Wang Dongfeng made a report. Vice Chairmen of the CPPCC Wang Yong, Zhou Qiang, Leung Chun-ying, Bartel, Shao Hong, Gao Yunlong, Mu Hong, Xian Hui, Jiang Xinzhi, Jiang Zuojun, He Baoxiang, Wang Guangqian, Zhu Yongxin, and Yang Zhen attended the meeting.
The report shows that out of the 23 Vice Chairmen of the CPPCC, 19 were present while 4 were absent. Vice Chairmen of the CPPCC Shi Taifeng, Pabala Gyalrong Jie, Chen Wu, and Qin Boyong were absent from the meeting.
According to the official website of the CPPCC, from January 2025 to February 6, 2026, the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC held a total of 17 (from the 30th to the 46th) CPPCC Chairman’s meetings, of which the 32nd, 33rd, 38th, 40th, and 43rd meetings were not publicly reported.
In the 11 previously publicly reported CPPCC Chairmen’s meetings in 2025, Shi Taifeng attended all of them.
On February 6, 2026, the day Shi Taifeng was absent from the CPPCC Chairman’s meeting, he was seen attending another public event.
According to official reports of the Chinese Communist Party, on the afternoon of February 6, 2026, Politburo Standing Committee member and Secretary of the Central Secretariat Cai Qi visited well-known figures in the cultural and scientific communities, accompanied by Politburo member and Minister of the Organization Department Shi Taifeng and Minister of the Publicity Department Li Shulei.
As the number one Vice Chairman of the CPPCC National Committee and Deputy Secretary of the Party Group, Shi Taifeng has been absent from high-level CPPCC meetings twice in the past half month.
Earlier on January 21, 2026, the National Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference held a symposium on the macroeconomic situation for 2025. According to reports from the CCP’s official media, Politburo Standing Committee member and Chairman of the CPPCC Wang Huning attended and spoke at the meeting; Vice Chairman of the CPPCC Wang Yong chaired the meeting. Vice Chairmen of the CPPCC Hu Chunhua, Bartel, Gao Yunlong, Wang Dongfeng, He Baoxiang, Zhu Yongxin, and Yang Zhen attended the meeting. Vice Chairman of the CPPCC and Deputy Party Secretary Shi Taifeng was absent.
In January 2024 and January 2025, at the annual symposiums on the macroeconomic situation convened by the CPPCC, Shi Taifeng presided over the meetings.
On January 20, 2026, the Chinese authorities held a “special seminar” for provincial and ministerial-level officials on the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee. In addition to Vice Premier He Lifeng, three Politburo members were absent from the meeting, including Vice Chairman of the Military Commission Zhang Youxia, former Secretary of the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region Ma Xingrui, and Minister of the Organization Department Shi Taifeng. Additionally, Commission members Liu Zhenli, Chief of the Joint Staff Department of the Military Commission, was absent.
On January 23, 2026, Shi Taifeng appeared at the closing ceremony of the seminar for provincial and ministerial-level officials. Meanwhile, Politburo members Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli, who also missed the opening ceremony, continued to be absent. On January 24, Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli were officially removed from office.
As of now, the reason for Shi Taifeng’s absence from the opening ceremony of the seminar for provincial and ministerial-level officials remains a mystery.
In early April 2025, Politburo members Shi Taifeng and Li Ganjie exchanged positions, with Shi Taifeng taking on the role of Minister of the Organization Department of the Communist Party of China, while Li Ganjie became Minister of the United Front Work Department of the CPC Central Committee. However, Shi Taifeng continued to serve as Vice Chairman of the CPPCC and Deputy Secretary of the Party Group.
Speculations suggest that Shi Taifeng’s consecutive absences from high-level CPPCC meetings in 2026 may indicate that his non-participation in CPPCC meetings as Minister of the Organization Department could become a common practice, and he may even resign from his position as Vice Chairman of the CPPCC at the upcoming National People’s Congress and the CPPCC.
Since the end of September 2025, Vice Chairman of the National People’s Congress and Chairman of the China Association for Promoting Democracy Hao Mingjin and Vice Chairman of the CPPCC and Executive Vice Chairman of the China Association for Promoting Democracy Qin Boyong have been out of the public eye, continuously absent from high-level meetings of the National People’s Congress, the CPPCC, and the China Association for Promoting Democracy.
On October 30, 2025, Jiang Wang, a commentator who had been revealing the movements of high-level officials of the Chinese Communist Party, posted on platform X, stating, “Chairman of the China Association for Promoting Democracy Hao Mingjin and Executive Vice Chairman Qin Boyong are under investigation. Vice Chairman Shen Jinqiang is cooperating with the investigation. A major case!”
On December 17, 2025, at the 80th anniversary celebration of the China Association for Promoting Democracy, Qin Boyong made an appearance, while Hao Mingjin continued to be absent.
However, Qin Boyong continued to be absent from the 44th Chairman’s meeting of the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC held on November 20, 2025, and the 46th Chairman’s meeting of the 14th National Committee of the CPPCC held on February 6, 2026.
Qin Boyong, born in November 1964 in Yongqing, Hebei, graduated from the Faculty of Law at Hebei University and has held various positions in the government. He served as Deputy Director of the Research Office of the Intermediate People’s Court of Langfang City, Deputy Director of the Supervision Bureau of Langfang City, Deputy District Chief of Anci District, Vice Mayor of Langfang City, Deputy Director of the Supervision Department of Hebei Province, and in May 2012, he became the Chairman of the Hebei Provincial Committee of the China Association for Promoting Democracy and the Director of the Legal Affairs Office of the Hebei Provincial Government.
In January 2013, Qin Boyong was appointed as Vice Governor of Hebei Province, Executive Committee Member of the China Association for Promoting Democracy, and Secretary of the Hebei Provincial Committee. From March 2016 to March 2023, he served as the Deputy Auditor General of the National Audit Office. In December 2022, he was promoted to Executive Vice Chairman of the China Association for Promoting Democracy. On March 10, 2023, he was elected as Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the CPPCC, which raised him to the vice-ministerial level.
Vice Chairman of the CPPCC, Chen Wu, who was absent from the February 6, 2026 CPPCC Chairman’s meeting, is a member of the Zhuang ethnic group, born in November 1954 in Chongzuo City, Guangxi. He has held various positions in Guangxi and served as Deputy Secretary of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region Party Committee and Chairman of the Autonomous Region Government since March 2013; he retired upon reaching the retirement age in October 2020 and then served as Vice Chairman of the Finance and Economic Committee of the National People’s Congress from November 2020. In March 2023, he became Vice Chairman of the National Committee of the CPPCC, which promoted him to the vice-ministerial level.
According to the official website of the CPPCC, apart from absenting from the recent CPPCC Chairman’s meetings, in the 11 publicly reported CPPCC Chairman’s meetings in 2025, Chen Wu also consecutively missed the 35th and 36th Chairman’s meetings held on April 29, 2025, and May 28, 2025, respectively.
During Chen Wu’s tenure as Vice Chairman, prior to the removal of Lantian Li, who used to serve as Chairman of the government of the Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, in May 2025, Li consecutively missed the 35th and 36th Chairman’s meetings. Lantian Li was officially removed from office on May 16, 2025.
Lantian Li, a member of the Zhuang ethnic group, born in October 1962 in Yizhou, Hechi City, Guangxi, served in various positions in Guangxi. During Chen Wu’s seven-year tenure as Chairman of the Guangxi Autonomous Region Government from April 2013 to October 2020, Lantian Li served as Vice Chairman and Executive Vice Chairman of the Autonomous Region Government from November 2011 to January 2018 and acted as Chen Wu’s deputy for nearly five years.
After Lantian Li’s removal from office, a continuous clearance of officials in Guangxi took place. Within the past week, several officials in Guangxi have been investigated, including Pan Yuwei, former Director of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress of Hechi where Lantian Li is from, Mo Zhenzhu, former Director of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress in Hechi, and Wang Yaolei, member of the Party Group and Deputy Director of the People’s Congress of Chongzuo City, where Chen Wu is from.
Vice Chairman of the CPPCC, Pabala Gyalrong Jie, a Tibetan, was born in January 1940, making him 86 years old, he currently serves as the Chairman of the CPPCC of the Tibet Autonomous Region and Vice President and Honorary President of the Chinese Buddhist Association.
Since 1965, Pabala Gyalrong Jie has served successively as Vice Chairman of the CPPCC in the 3rd, 4th, 5th, 6th, 7th, 10th, 11th, 12th, 13th, and 14th National Committees. He also served as Deputy Chairman of the Standing Committee of the 8th and 9th National People’s Congress, making him the longest-serving vice-ministerial level official.
Pabala Gyalrong Jie attended the National People’s Congress meeting in March 2025, where he was present at the opening and closing sessions. However, he has been absent from CPPCC Chairman’s meetings and CPPCC Standing Committee meetings since 2025.
On February 2, 2026, the 14th meeting of the Standing Committee of the CPPCC of the Tibet Autonomous Region was held. Pabala Gyalrong Jie was absent. According to official reports, the meeting was presided over by Slang Nima, member of the Standing Committee of the Tibet Autonomous Region Party Committee, Minister of the United Front Work Department of the Autonomous Region, Deputy Secretary of the Party Group of the CPPCC, and Vice Chairman of the CPPCC, who was deputized by Vice Chairman of the CPPCC and Chairman of the CPPCC of the Tibet Autonomous Region Pabala Gyalrong Jie.