On October 23, the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) concluded with several central alternate committee members skipped over in the promotion to the central committee, including three civilian officials. Despite this, they have been gradually showing up in public after the plenary session, indicating that they are still carrying out their regular duties. However, analysts believe that these officials may have reached the end of their careers and are under surveillance, ready to be taken down at any moment.
According to the communique of the Fourth Plenary Session of the CCP, 11 central alternate committee members were promoted to the central committee, excluding those like the Rocket Force Deputy Political Commissar Ding Xingnong, who was previously skipped over in last year’s Third Plenary Session. Among the 7 individuals skipped this time are Wang Jiayi, Deputy Minister of Education of the CCP, Fang Hongwei, Secretary of the Xi’an Municipal Party Committee, and Shi Yugang, Deputy Secretary of the Party Group of the Yunnan Provincial Political Consultative Conference. The remaining officials promoted all came from the military.
The British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) recently cited analysis by Song Wendie, a China researcher at the Atlantic Council in the United States, stating that “they have a high probability of being under investigation.”
However, the aforementioned three civilian officials have started to appear publicly since October 24, showing that they are still actively working.
On October 24, the Shaanxi Provincial Committee of the CCP held a meeting where footage of Fang Hongwei attending the conference was broadcasted on Shaanxi TV. Meanwhile, Yunnan province’s official media reported that Shi Yugang attended and spoke at a meeting of the provincial political consultative conference on October 27. In addition, according to news from the website of the Ministry of Education of the CCP, Wang Jiayi attended the opening ceremony of a university football league in Shandong on October 28, where he mentioned Xi Jinping’s “important instructions” on football work during a research symposium.
Analyzing the situation, the media indicates that being skipped over for promotion suggests that these three individuals have reached the end of their career paths and are unlikely to progress further.
Commenting on the matter, Li Linyi, a current affairs commentator, stated to Dajiyuan that the fact these three were passed over for promotion signals a lack of trust placed in them. According to the CCP’s rules, they are likely to undergo internal review. Currently, they are essentially working under surveillance and could be removed at any time.
The backgrounds of these three disillusioned high-ranking officials also draw attention.
Wang Jiayi, born in December 1965 in Ningxia’s Qingtongxia, started his career as a teacher before moving up the ranks to become the Deputy Minister of Education of the CCP. Fang Hongwei, born in June 1966 in Fuping, Shaanxi, like Xi Jinping, graduated from Tsinghua University and has held significant positions in various governmental bodies. As for Shi Yugang, born in July 1965 in Hunan Fenghuang, he has a long history of working within the National Ethnic Affairs Commission before moving up to senior positions within the CCP.
Commenting on the broader implications of the Fourth Plenary Session, Li Yanming recently wrote in Dajiyuan that the abnormalities observed hint at the escalating power struggles within the top echelons of the CCP, indicating turbulent times ahead.