【Epoch Times March 13, 2026】The Chinese Communist Party has always demanded “absolute loyalty” from its military personnel. In recent years, the Party has been emphasizing the importance of loyalty year after year, month after month, in large conferences and small meetings, to the point where the listeners are tired of hearing it.
Why has the Chinese Communist Party been emphasizing the need for military personnel to be “absolutely loyal” in recent years? Regarding the Party’s rhetoric, many people now have a consensus, that is: the Party always demands what it lacks. In other words, no matter how much the CCP demands “absolute loyalty” from the military, the phenomenon of military personnel being “absolutely disloyal” is rampant.
Why is the desired “absolute loyalty” of the CCP’s military personnel always contradicted by the reality of military personnel being “absolutely disloyal”? This question really deserves further analysis.
I will start by analyzing this issue from the perspective of the five major phenomena in the Chinese Communist Party’s military.
At the 2022 CCP’s 20th Party Congress, the Central Military Commission was formed with seven members, namely: Chairman Xi Jinping, vice chairmen Zhang Youxia and He Weidong, and members Li Shangfu, Miao Hua, Zhang Shengmin, and Liu Zhenli.
By 2026, only Xi Jinping and Zhang Shengmin remain on the Central Military Commission, with Zhang Youxia, He Weidong, Li Shangfu, Miao Hua, and Liu Zhenli all being labeled as “severely corrupt individuals.”
At the end of the 20th Party Congress, Xinhua News Agency published an article titled “Hoisting the Great Ensign, Composing a New Chapter – Birth of the New CCP Central Committee and CCP Central Commission for Discipline Inspection,” with the first subtitle being “General Secretary Xi Jinping Personally Plans and Deploys, Personally Guides and Guards, Providing Correct Direction for Personnel Preparations for the 20th Session of the ‘Two Committees'”. The third subtitle is “Adhere to Standards and Strict Criteria – Prioritize political standards, strictly uphold political integrity, select trustworthy, dependable, and capable cadres for the Party and the people.” The fourth subtitle is “Precision and Scientific Evaluation – Conduct comprehensive, multi-angle, three-dimensional examinations, carry out comprehensive historical dialectical assessments, and accurately assess the candidates.” The article especially mentions selecting Central Committee members as “Marxist political figures”.
All seven members of the Central Military Commission are Central Committee members, with Zhang Youxia and He Weidong also being members of the Politburo of the CCP. According to the article, all seven members of the Central Military Commission were specifically selected and appointed under Xi’s personal guidance, and after being thoroughly assessed by high-ranking officials responsible for personnel selection, each should be politically “trustworthy, dependable, and capable cadres,” each should be a “Marxist political figure.” How is it then that within just three years, five out of the seven individuals were labeled as “severely corrupt individuals”?
Anyone with common sense would ask: how to explain the completely contradictory phenomenon mentioned above? If you demand my “absolute loyalty,” and there are only seven members on the Central Military Commission, and five of them were chosen wrongly, how can you expect me to be “absolutely loyal” to you?
Shortly after the end of the 20th Party Congress, a major scandal erupted in the Rocket Forces. The investigation revealed that all four past commanders of the Rocket Forces, Wei Fenghe, Zhou Yaning, Li Yuchao, and Wang Houbin, were all labeled as “severely corrupt individuals.”
The Rocket Forces were established in 2015 as the fourth branch of the military in addition to land, sea, and air forces. It is the CCP’s ace military branch for unifying Taiwan by force, deterring the United States, and seeking world hegemony; it is the strategic military branch capable of launching medium-range, long-range, and intercontinental missiles with nuclear warheads from sea, land, and air, coined by Xi as the “core force of China’s strategic deterrence, strategic support for China’s great power status, and a crucial cornerstone in safeguarding national security.”
Given the extreme importance of the Rocket Forces, the Chairman of the Central Military Commission, the Central Military Commission itself, and the Political Work Department of the Commission should have been extremely cautious and meticulous in selecting and appointing the Rocket Forces commanders, prioritizing political loyalty and integrity.
However, after appointing three severely corrupt individuals consecutively, Chairman Xi, the Central Military Commission, and the Political Work Department could not find a suitable candidate within the Rocket Forces to appoint as the fourth Rocket Forces commander. After extensive external selection, Navy Deputy Commander Wang Houbin was chosen as the fourth Rocket Forces commander. In the end, Wang Houbin also turned out to be a “severely corrupt individual.”
Anyone with common sense would ask: how can you demand “absolute loyalty” from military personnel when facing such extreme anomalies? When you appoint the first Rocket Forces commander incorrectly, it is a grave dereliction of duty, and it cannot be forgiven. The second time, another incorrect appointment is not just a severe dereliction of duty but a severe breach of duty and should be dealt with seriously.
There is an old Chinese saying, “Don’t fail three times.” The third time, when another incorrect appointment is made, it is not merely a severe breach of duty but severe corruption within governance; you are no longer qualified to stay in a position of selecting and appointing personnel at a high level and should be held accountable seriously for Party discipline, military discipline, and legal responsibilities.
However, after repeating these mistakes, there were no self-criticisms, resignations, or investigations for Party and legal responsibilities. Instead, a fourth appointment was made, only to find out that it was another mistake. Why should I be “absolutely loyal” to you?
On October 17, 2025, a spokesperson for the Ministry of National Defense of the People’s Republic of China announced: “With the approval of the Central Committee of the Party and the Central Military Commission, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the Supervisory Commission of the Central Military Commission have successively launched investigations into nine members, including He Weidong, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, former member of the Central Military Commission and Director of the Political Work Department of the Central Military Commission, Miao Hua, former Deputy Director of the Political Work Department of the Military Commission, He Hongjun, former Deputy Director of the Joint Operations Command of the Military Commission, Wang Xiubin, Rocket Forces Commander Wang Houbin, former Commander of the Eastern Theater Command Lin Xiangyang, former Army Political Commissar Qin Shutong, former Navy Political Commissar Yuan Huazhi, and former Commander of the Armed Police Force Wang Chunning.”
They added that “after the investigation, these nine individuals seriously violated Party discipline, suspected of severe duty-related crimes, with particularly large amounts involved, extremely serious in nature, causing extremely adverse effects. According to relevant laws and regulations within the Party and the country, the Party Central Committee has decided to expel these nine individuals from the Party and refer those suspected of criminal matters to the military procurators office for prosecution in accordance with the law.”
Please elaborate on how He Weidong and Miao Hua specifically violated Party discipline? Political discipline? Organizational discipline? Integrity discipline? Disciplinary discipline? Work discipline? Life discipline? What serious duty-related crimes are they suspected of? Bribery? Graft? Corruption? How substantial are the amounts involved?
He Weidong is a Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, personally and unusually promoted and trusted by Chairman Xi Jinping, so why wasn’t he “absolutely loyal”? Why did he dare to lead the way in “seriously violating Party discipline”? Why is he also suspected of serious duty-related crimes?
Miao Hua, a member of the Central Military Commission and the Director of Political Work Department, assists Chairman Xi in “political build-up of the military,” so shouldn’t he be “absolutely loyal”? Why did he also become a “severely corrupt individual”? Miao Hua was responsible for the selection and appointment of high-ranking military leaders, how much money did he receive from these high-ranking officers? What was the exact amount?
Anyone with common sense would ask: how can I be “absolutely loyal” to you when you hide all these major issues from me and do not disclose any specific facts of Party discipline or legal violations?
On January 24, 2026, the Ministry of National Defense spokesperson announced that Zhang Youxia, a member of the Political Bureau of the CCP Central Committee and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, and Liu Zhenli, a member of the Central Military Commission and Chief of Staff of the Joint Staff Department of the military, were under investigation for suspected severe disciplinary violations.
On January 25th, People’s Liberation Army Daily published an editorial stating, “Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli, as senior Party and military officials, severely betrayed the trust of the Party Central Committee and the Central Military Commission, seriously trampled and destroyed the authority of the Military Commission Chairman’s responsibilities, seriously fostered an impact on the Party’s absolute leadership over the military, harmed the political foundation of the Party’s governance, seriously affected the image and prestige of the Military Commission’s leadership team, seriously disrupted the political ideology foundation of the unity and progress of all military officers and soldiers, and caused enormous damage to the political construction, political ecology, and combat readiness construction of the military, creating extremely detrimental effects on the Party, the country, and the military.”
Please explain: Zhang and Liu were announced under investigation on January 24th, did the investigation conclude with these findings by January 25th?
On November 12, 2025, People’s Daily published an article by Zhang Youxia, Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission, titled “High-Quality Advancement in National Defense and Military Modernization.” The article begins by mentioning the “core leader” Xi and Xi’s “strong military thinking”; the article mentions Xi a total of 20 times, almost every important paragraph references him.
The article specifically mentions: “Emphasize strong organizational construction, especially strengthening the construction of high-level Party committees, leading the implementation of the Military Commission Chairman’s responsibilities in all aspects, addressing warbuilding tasks comprehensively, resolving contradictions in modernization construction, enhancing the leadership, organization, and execution capabilities of Party organizations, forging a politically determined, capable command headquarters.”
Isn’t Zhang Youxia publicly, decisively, and explicitly upholding the principle of the Military Commission Chairman’s responsibilities?
Please explain: how did Zhang and Liu “seriously trample and destroy the authority of the Military Commission Chairman’s responsibilities”? What are the facts to back this up?
So far, we only know that Zhang and Liu were arrested, painted with the brush of “five severe violations,” labeled as “severely corrupt individuals,” and deemed as the results of “a major achievement in the Party and military’s anti-corruption struggle.” Yet, we do not know any specific facts of their violations against Party discipline or state laws.
Anyone with common sense would ask: why am I supposed to believe you when you demand my “absolute loyalty,” but hide all these significant issues from me, all the while not disclosing any concrete facts, forcing me to blindly trust you?
According to my initial calculations, at the end of the 20th Party Congress, there were over 40 active generals. With each successive round of military purges, by the present day of 2026, there are only four active generals in public view.
On March 7 of this year, at the National People’s Congress military representative plenary meeting, only four active generals were present: Zhang Shengmin, Dong Jun, Han Shengyan, and Yang Zhibin. Han and Yang were promoted by December 22 of last year from major general to general.
Including the two retired generals, a total of six generals attended this year’s National People’s Congress military representative plenary meeting. On March of 2025, 41 generals, both active and retired, attended the plenary, with Han Shengyan and Yang Zhibin still holding the rank of major general. Comparing this year’s attendance to last year’s, the number of generals has decreased by 37.
Fourteen active generals have been directly announced to be under investigation: Zhang Youxia, He Weidong, Li Shangfu, Wei Fenghe, Liu Zhenli, Miao Hua, He Hongjun, Wang Xiubin, Li Yuchao, Wang Houbin, Lin Xiangyang, Qin Shutong, Yuan Huazhi, and Wang Chunning.
Four active generals have been indirectly announced to be under investigation: Wang Renhua, Li Wei, Li Qiaoming, Zhang Hongbing (removed from National People’s Congress Deputy status).
Twenty-one active generals have been “disappeared,” including: Xu Qiling, Staff Chief of the Joint Staff Department of the Military Commission; Xu Xueqiang, Minister of the Equipment Development Department of the Military Commission; Liu Qingsong, Political Commissar of the Eastern Theater Command; Wang Haijiang, Commander of the Western Theater Command and Political Commissar Li Fengbiao; Wu Yanan, Commander of the Southern Theater Command and Political Commissar Wang Wenquan; Huang Ming, Commander of the Northern Theater Command and Political Commissar Zheng Xuan; Wang Qiang, Commander of the Central Theater Command and Political Commissar Xu Deqing; Ju Gansheng, Commander of the Strategic Support Forces; Xu Zhongbo, former Political Commissar of the Rocket Forces, and Xu Xisheng, Political Commissar of the Rocket Forces; Navy Commander Hu Zhongming; Army Political Commissar Chen Hui; Air Force Commander Chang Dingqiu and Political Commissar Guo Puxiao; Yang Xuejun, President of the Military Science Academy and Political Commissar Ling Huanxin; and Xiao Tianliang, President of the National Defense University.
Please explain: where have these 21 active generals gone? With 20 of these people rising to the rank and positions of general with Miao Hua under inspection, and 20 of them disappearing after Miao Hua’s suspension for inspection in November 2024, did they all provide money to Miao Hua? Chen Hui’s promotion to Major General and appointment as the Political Commissar of the Military Space Forces were under Miao Hua’s inspection; Chen Hui has also “disappeared,” did he provide money to Miao Hua? Have these 21 individuals been under review? Have they been subjected to disciplinary actions under Party and military regulations, or have they retired early?
Why are there only four active generals left in the entire military?
Anyone with common sense would ask such questions: if you demand “absolute loyalty” from military personnel, and yet you conceal all these significant issues and do not disclose the facts, then how can I be “absolutely loyal” to you?
The term “absolute loyalty” itself is wrong.
Loyalty is not absolute but has boundaries. Being loyal to someone or a cause is because that person embodies and embodies one’s life values or social ideals, and you firmly believe these values and ideals are legitimate and even sacred. Once there is a change in the object of loyalty, going in the opposite direction, then one should withdraw their loyalty.
Unconditional absolute loyalty is mere blind obedience. Anyone with a conscience and common sense would not engage in blind obedience. Those who demand blind obedience and those who obey blindly are against conscience and common sense, and are the ones who cannot obtain “absolute loyalty.”
This article only highlights five major phenomena. In the actual operations of the Chinese Communist Party, there are many more such phenomena. Just from these five major phenomena, the CCP’s aspiration for “absolute loyalty” is fundamentally unattainable. If it is possible, it is self-deception.
Epoch Times Original Context.