Last week, Li Xi, a member of the Politburo Standing Committee and Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection of the Chinese Communist Party, visited Chongqing and delivered a speech urging the local officials to “prevent and rectify prominent deviations in performance appraisal.” Accompanying Li Xi on his research trip was Yuan Jiajun, the Secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Committee, who had previously been implicated in negative rumors about his future prospects.
According to the official Xinhua News Agency, Li Xi visited Chongqing from July 15 to 17, where he emphasized the need to “prevent and rectify prominent deviations in performance appraisal” and strengthen “anti-corruption work.”
Local reports indicated that Yuan Jiajun, the Secretary of the Chongqing Municipal Committee, participated in the research activities alongside Li Xi. Of particular note, on the final day of Li Xi’s visit to Chongqing, a sudden mountain collapse occurred in Pengshui County on July 17th, resulting in 8 fatalities, 34 people missing, and 10 injured individuals receiving medical treatment.
Independent commentator Xiang commented on social media platform X that Yuan Jiajun, the current Deputy Minister-level Secretary, made progress only after Ma Xingrui, suggesting a potential link between their interests. With Ma Xingrui facing imminent charges, the next in line for advancement could be Secretary Yuan.
Some internet users speculated, “I feel like Yuan Jiajun is also in trouble.”
Former member of the Central Political Bureau, Ma Xingrui, was removed from his position as Secretary of Xinjiang last year and went missing for some time before being officially ousted in early April of this year.
Yuan Jiajun served as the Deputy General Manager of the Aerospace Science and Technology Group from November 2007 to May 2011, where he had connections with several high-ranking military officials who have since been removed or “disappeared” from the organization, such as Wu Yansheng, Dai Shulun, Lei Fanpei, Yuan Jie, Xu Dazhe, and Ma Xingrui. He previously served as the deputy to Ma Xingrui, the General Manager of the Aerospace Science and Technology Group.
In a recent article for “Shang Bao,” independent commentator Du Zheng mentioned the inherently closed and corrupt nature of the military-industrial complex, where officials within the same organization often engage in corrupt activities together. With the recent purge of Xi Jinping’s appointees, many have been implicated in internal power struggles. Yuan Jiajun may inevitably become entangled in the aerospace system corruption case.
The political landscape in Chongqing has been tumultuous in recent months. In March, Mayor Hu Henghua was ousted; in April, Standing Committee member Luo Lin was removed; in May, the official announcement of the “death” of Zhang Anjiang, Deputy Mayor and Director of Public Security of Chongqing, was met with widespread speculations of suicide by jumping off a building.
Previously, on October 25, 2025, Deputy Mayor of Chongqing Jiang Duntao was investigated during his term in office.
Commentator Zuo Hao wrote on social media platform X on May 9th that Yuan Jiajun’s situation was becoming increasingly precarious. Following Ma Xingrui’s shielding in the military corruption case, Yuan managed to escape unharmed, only to be embroiled in the bribery case involving San’an Optoelectronics.
Zuo Hao shared a photo dated June 8, 2023, showing that San’an Optoelectronics and STMicroelectronics signed an agreement to cooperate on an 8-inch silicon carbide (SiC) project in Chongqing. The signing ceremony was attended by Secretary Yuan Jiajun, Mayor Hu Henghua, Deputy Mayor Jiang Duntao, Chongqing Liangjiang New Area Secretary Luo Lin, Director of Public Security Zhang Anjiang, Chairman of San’an Group Lin Xiucheng, Chairman of San’an Optoelectronics Lin Zhiqiang, General Manager Lin Kechuang, as well as senior executives from STMicroelectronics.
Among the high-ranking officials present at the signing ceremony, Hu Henghua, Jiang Duntao, and Luo Lin had already been ousted; the circumstances surrounding Zhang Anjiang’s death remained suspicious; and Lin Xiucheng and his son-in-law Lin Kechuang were arrested in March and April, respectively.
Caixin reported on April 29 that Hu Henghua and Luo Lin were involved in accepting bribes from Lin Kechuang, the son-in-law of Lin Xiucheng.
Zuo Hao suggested that Yuan Jiajun may have also received money from Lin Xiucheng, but the extent of his involvement remains unknown as he has not been removed from his post yet.
Yuan Jiajun was once seen as a potential attendee at the 21st National Congress of the Communist Party of China. However, amid the turmoil in the Chongqing political sphere, rumors of his unfavorable career prospects have been circulating.
Following the downfall of Mayor Hu Henghua, the Hong Kong media outlet “Ming Pao” wrote that over the past decade, the mountainous city seems to have fallen under a curse, becoming a “trap” for officials. Chongqing has seen two previous Municipal Committee Secretaries (Bo Xilai, Sun Zhengcai) imprisoned, the former Deputy Secretary Ren Xuefeng falling to his death in the capital, and three Deputy Mayors and Public Security Directors (Wang Lijun, He Ting, Deng Huilin) being ousted. Some netizens joked that the Chongqing Municipal Committee and Government Building was constructed on a hill slope, implying poor Feng Shui.
Overseas netizens hotly discussed, “Chongqing’s Feng Shui isn’t working, Mr. Yuan may be in for a tough time this time.” “It seems like this chess game will continue to shuffle down.”