Former Xinjiang Communist Party Secretary and Central Political Bureau Member Ma Xingrui, who stepped down in July, was absent from the recent Central Economic Work Conference, marking at least the second important high-level meeting he has missed in the past half month. The reasons behind Ma Xingrui’s absence have various versions circulating.
The Central Economic Work Conference was held on December 10-11 in Beijing, with seven members of the Central Political Bureau Standing Committee in attendance, along with other high-ranking officials from various government departments and committees.
Ma Xingrui was notably absent from the televised footage of the conference on December 11. Despite traditionally being listed first according to the stroke order of Political Bureau members’ surnames, the first person seen on the screen was Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
During a previous Communist Party Political Bureau “collective study” session on November 28, Ma Xingrui was also missing from the televised footage, further fueling rumors regarding his situation.
Ma Xingrui, 66, has a long history in China’s aerospace industry, having held positions such as General Manager of China Aerospace Science and Technology Corporation and Director of the National Space Administration. He was dubbed the “Aerospace Marshal” for his contributions. Ma served as Deputy Party Secretary of Guangdong Province at the end of 2013, later also serving as Party Secretary of Shenzhen City. He was promoted to Governor of Guangdong Province at the end of 2016 and took on the role of Xinjiang Party Secretary in late 2021, subsequently becoming a member of the Political Bureau during the 20th Party Congress.
The official announcement on July 1 stated that former Deputy Minister of the United Front Work Department, Chen Xiaojiang, would replace Ma Xingrui as Xinjiang Party Secretary, while Ma Xingrui was appointed to another position. However, his new role has not been publicly disclosed to date.
Amid continuous online rumors about Ma Xingrui and his wife, Rong Li, there have been reports claiming that they were taken away for investigation on November 18 at 22:00 by Li Xinran, Secretary-General of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. It was also mentioned that this was the second time Ma Xingrui had been taken for questioning.
A report from November 19 by commentator Jiang Wang alleged that Ma Xingrui is currently being held in the Anhui Huangshan “high-ranking cadre retention center” by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection.
On December 11, overseas commentator Du Wen revealed on a social media platform that “unconfirmed information from within the Communist Party system indicates that Ma Xingrui has been isolated for investigation at Xi Jinping’s decision due to alleged involvement in corruption related to military equipment.”
Commentator Li Lin told Epoch Times that there are two main speculations regarding the issues involving Ma Xingrui. One theory suggests his involvement in the significant losses incurred by Shenzhen Metro and Vanke during his time in Guangdong. The investment by Shenzhen Metro in Vanke took place in 2016, during Ma Xingrui’s tenure as Shenzhen City Party Secretary. There have been rumors linking this deal to Ma Xingrui’s family. With Vanke facing bankruptcy and Shenzhen Metro suffering billions in losses, Ma could be facing accountability. Another speculation is that Ma’s troubles could be related to anti-corruption efforts in the aerospace industry, given his long history in this sector before becoming Shenzhen City Party Secretary.
Independent commentator Xiang said on a platform that Ma Xingrui’s involvement in the 2016 Shenzhen Metro investment in Vanke case also implicates Hu Chunhua, the then Party Secretary of Guangdong Province. Current Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, Li Xi, previously served as Party Secretary of Guangdong Province, with Hu Chunhua as his predecessor. Li Xi may continue to investigate Hu Chunhua. If Ma Xingrui is being looked into for military-related issues, it could potentially implicate another Political Bureau member, Yuan Jiaguang, the current Party Secretary of Chongqing, who also has ties to the aerospace industry. Once Ma Xingrui’s situation is officially announced, these two figures may come under scrutiny.
Ma Xingrui has also been linked to the Evergrande Xu Jiayin case. After Xu Jiayin’s arrest, commentator Du Zheng alleged in Taiwan media that Xu Jiayin provided a long list of names, including former Guangdong Governor Ma Xingrui. During Li Xi’s and his predecessors’ time in power in Guangdong, which coincided with Evergrande’s rise, there were likely intertwined interests. Li Xi likely took preemptive action by apprehending Xu Jiayin to assert control over the situation.
Additionally, there are suggestions that Ma Xingrui’s issues may be related to Xinjiang.
Commentator Jiang Wang claimed on December 7 that during Ma Xingrui’s four-year tenure in Xinjiang, he came into contact with 3.3 trillion yuan in construction funds, of which he allegedly embezzled 100 billion yuan. However, Ma Xingrui supposedly shared the proceeds with Li Xi and Peng Liyuan. Jiang further mentioned that Ma Xingrui’s wife, Li Xi’s wife, and Gao Shiwen, the Deputy Party Secretary of Nanchang, Jiangxi, purchased entire buildings in Hong Kong and acquired gas stations and land overseas.
Since Ma Xingrui’s departure from Xinjiang in July, the Central Inspection Team entered Xinjiang in late July 2025, conducting inspections in the region for about two and a half months until mid-October. Following this, several former associates of Ma Xingrui in Xinjiang have met with suspicious fates: on October 13, Liu Chen, Deputy Secretary of the Political and Legal Committee in Xinjiang, was investigated; on November 1, Jin Zhizhen, Vice Chairman of the Xinjiang Political Consultative Committee, was subject to investigation; on November 3, Jiang Xinjun, Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission and Director of the Supervisory Commission of the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps, passed away suddenly; on November 10, Ma Zhijun, Deputy Secretary of Urumqi Municipal Party Committee and Secretary of the Political and Legal Committee, fell from grace; on November 30, Chen Weijun, Executive Vice Chairman of the Xinjiang government, was reportedly investigated.