The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) recently briefed on the “individual representative qualification review report” without disclosing specific numbers or names. Despite not being explicitly named, the Central Military Commission Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia, who has been under investigation for over three months, has not yet entered the dismissal process, highlighting the internal differences in handling this case that have garnered attention from the public.
The announcement of the meeting released by the CCP’s official media Xinhua News Agency on April 28th revealed that Yang Xiaochao, the Chairman of the Qualifications Review Committee of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, presented a report regarding “individual representatives.” However, the announcement did not further clarify the situation involving the individuals in question.
A retired legal affairs official from the former Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, Zheng Ze (pseudonym), pointed out during an interview with Dajiyuan that in the CCP’s current institutional arrangement, the “representative qualification review report” typically precedes the cancellation of qualifications for National People’s Congress representatives.
He stated, “The term ‘individual representative’ indicates that specific individuals have entered the processing stage, but the list has not been released yet. I believe this time is different from the past instances of directly naming individuals. The authorities have only provided a general statement. It sends a signal that this wave of personnel changes is still operating within a ‘black box’ and has not yet reached a fully public stage.”
According to Zheng Ze, this indirect naming approach using generalized language signifies that the related personnel changes are in a sensitive and undisclosed stage. Contrary to previous cases where senior military leaders or officials were directly named and dismissed, this handling method is notably different, potentially indicating a more complex situation behind the scenes.
Xinhua News Agency previously reported that during the closing of the 14th session of the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress on February 26th, 19 National People’s Congress representatives were simultaneously stripped of their qualifications, including 9 military leaders from the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Information Support Force Systems, with 5 of them being top generals: former Navy Commander Shen Jinlong, former Navy Political Commissar Qin Shengxiang, former Air Force Political Commissar Yu Zhongfu, former Army Commander Li Qiaoming, and Information Support Force Political Commissar Li Wei. Additionally, one Major General and three Brigadier Generals were also dismissed.
An insider in the CCP military system, Wang Dayou (pseudonym), disclosed that since the official announcement on January 24th regarding the investigation of Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhen, over three months have passed, revealing three different opinions among the members of the Politburo Standing Committee. He mentioned, “The first stance is to immediately transfer Zhang and Liu to the Military Commission for Discipline Inspection, expel them from the Party and the military, and simultaneously remove them as National People’s Congress representatives; the second view believes that handling such high-ranking officers must follow the Party regulations and refrain from making hasty decisions before the facts are fully investigated; the third is the moderate approach, attempting to avoid conflict but inadvertently upsetting the faction supporting the ousting of Zhang Youxia, and you know who that person is.”
Some individuals familiar with the CCP system indicated that the discussion within relevant circles regarding the failure to dismiss Zhang Youxia as a National People’s Congress representative has stirred debate. Feedback suggests that typically, the disqualification of similar high-ranking military officials as National People’s Congress representatives only occurs after being referred for military judicial review or expulsion from the Party and the military, a process that is then publicly announced to terminate their status as National People’s Congress representatives.
However, citing an example, scholars pointed out that when Beijing pushed through the enactment of the “Hong Kong National Security Law” in 2020, the proposal was made on May 21st, passed by the National People’s Congress on May 28th, and completed within a month by the Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress without public consultation, demonstrating that in cases where CCP decision-makers are in unanimous agreement, such processes generally do not experience delays.
On January 24th, 2026, the CCP announced that Central Politburo members and Vice-Chairman of the Central Military Commission Zhang Youxia, as well as Central Military Commission member and Chief of Staff of the Joint Staff Department Liu Zhen, were being investigated for serious disciplinary violations. On the same day, the People’s Liberation Army website published a commentary categorically condemning both individuals. The editorial repeatedly used the term “serious,” directly linking their actions to the “Chairman Responsibility System,” accusing them of “seriously undermining” the highest principles of military leadership, impacting the Party’s absolute leadership over the military, its governing foundation, the authority of the Military Commission, and the ideological foundation within the armed forces, while causing “significant damage” to the political construction, political ecology, and combat effectiveness systems of the military.
A knowledgeable observer of military interpersonal relationships, Qin Song (pseudonym), revealed to Dajiyuan that the cases of Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhen will not drag on for too long. He said, “Although there are different opinions within the Standing Committee regarding Zhang Youxia’s case, everyone is on the same boat, and prolonging the issue will have a very negative external impact. It is said that Xi Jinping’s side hopes to resolve this problem ‘as quickly as possible.’ However, there are differing opinions at the level of Brigadier Generals, while those at the ranks of Major Generals and Generals have already been dealt with more or less.”
Following the customary practice of the CCP, once an official is under disciplinary review, the process of canceling their National People’s Congress representative qualifications typically commences simultaneously. However, from the current situation, it appears that resistance has emerged within the middle ranks of the military regarding the Zhang Youxia case, subsequently affecting the final handling pace at the top levels.
Given the official registration and high-intensity political condemnation already published by the military’s mouthpiece, the delay in initiating the process to cancel Zhang Youxia’s National People’s Congress representative qualifications has become a crucial indicator for observing the high-level power struggles within the CCP.