Recently, former Chinese media person Zhao Lanjian, who was the first to expose the arrest of He Weidong, a close confidant of Chinese leader Xi Jinping and Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the CCP, revealed on social media that the “clique politics” case involving Miao Hua and He Weidong has been reported to the entire military, with shocking allegations and a thorough cleansing of the army underway. It has been rumored that this round of purging is being orchestrated by Zhang Youxia, leading to a blow against Xi Jinping.
According to Zhao Lanjian’s post on April 24, following the downfall of Miao Hua and the arrest of He Weidong, on April 20, General He Hongjun, who was in charge of the Central Military Commission’s Political Work Department, was taken away for investigation, along with Bureau Director Chen Jiang.
On April 17, the Central Military Commission of the CCP conveyed a confidential internal document to all senior military officers above the rank of major general (including retirees) through the means of “viewing or having the document read by the leadership of the Military Commission,” indicating that Miao Hua and He Weidong were implicated in forming cliques and engaging in clique politics. They were deemed to have “seriously affected the responsibility system of the Central Military Commission’s Chairman and seriously influenced the political ecology of the military,” with an attempt to influence the selection of personnel for the 21st Party Congress, labeled as “treason disguised as loyalty” with no forgiveness. Miao, He, and their clique members are under investigation.
It is said that the document is two pages long, with Miao Hua’s account covering one and a half pages and containing exceptionally harsh language unprecedented before.
Zhao Lanjian’s disclosure revealed that Miao Hua, failing to succeed Xu Qiliang as Vice Chairman of the Military Commission, vigorously recommended He Weidong as a replacement. After Miao was taken away, Wang Houbin, Wang Xiubin, Lin Xiangyang were in panic, and they hastened to seek refuge from He Weidong, presenting gifts overnight. Following the investigation of He Weidong, he immediately implicated the “two Wangs and one Lin.”
The case reportedly involves multiple issues such as buying and selling official positions, power-money transactions, bribery, corruption, and decadent lifestyle. Initial investigations indicate that Miao Hua received bribes exceeding 100 million yuan, while He Weidong received over 60 million yuan, with the case still being deeply investigated.
It is claimed that the Central Military Commission has deployed the entire military to conduct the so-called “Five Rectifications” and “Four Clarifications” movements, conducting political screenings on all senior officers above the rank of major general (including retirees) one by one. The scope of the cleansing extends to the entire personnel system of the military, marking April 17 as the point where the CCP’s military political clean-up entered deep waters.
The authenticity of the above information cannot be confirmed at present.
In the disclosure, Zhao Lanjian pointed out the attention-grabbing news of General He Hongjun, in charge of the Central Military Commission’s Political Work Department, being taken away.
Public records reveal that He Hongjun, born in August 1961 in Yang County, Shaanxi Province, became the Director of the Political Department of the Qinghai Provincial Military Region in December 2012, promoted to major general in July 2013. He served as Deputy Minister of the Cadres Department of the General Political Department in 2014, was appointed as Assistant Director of the Political Work Department of the Military Commission and simultaneously served as Deputy Team Leader of the State Council’s Working Group for the Placement of Military Cadres for Civilian Jobs in 2017. Promoted to lieutenant general in December 2019, he became Deputy Director of the Political Work Department of the Military Commission.
On the eve of the CCP’s 20th Third Plenum on July 9, 2024, He Hongjun was promoted to general and concurrently took on the role as Executive Deputy Director of the Central Military Commission’s Political Work Department (regular military region position). It was analyzed at that time that as the executive deputy director holding real power under Miao Hua, he marginalized Miao Hua, allowing him to retire at will, even indicating early signs of preparing for his downfall.
It is worth noting that He Hongjun, who replaced the suspended Miao Hua, attended the military and political symposium on January 22 but his name was not mentioned in official media and military reports from the CCP. In the CCTV broadcast, the lower half of the nameplate in front of He Hongjun was covered, making his full name not completely visible. This created an illusion for external observers that no senior military figure attended the symposium.
On March 13, Zhao Lanjian was the first to report the arrest of Vice Chairman of the Central Military Commission of the CCP, He Weidong. It was reported that the third-ranking figure in the Chinese military, He Weidong, was taken into custody on March 11, right after the closure of the National People’s Congress, and his residences in Beijing and Shanghai were raided. This news quickly drew public attention.
Afterward, He Weidong remained out of the public eye. On April 10, the UK’s Financial Times reported, citing six informants, that He Weidong had been removed from his position. One of the informants disclosed that since being detained, He Weidong had been continuously questioned by the authorities.
From the time of the announcement of the “suspension for examination” of the member of the Central Military Commission and Director of the Political Work Department, Miao Hua, back in November until now, several generals including Qin Shutong, Wang Chunning, Han Weiguo, Zhao Keshi, Lin Xiangyang, and Navy Admiral Yuan Huazhi, among others, have successively been reported for investigation. Many of them are related to the former 31st Group Army stationed in Fujian province. There are intersections between He Weidong and these implicated military leaders.
Previously, Zhao Lanjian disclosed on the X platform that Fujian-related senior officers were being purged. Between March 13 and 23, the CCP initiated a new wave of cleansings, resulting in over a hundred senior military officers being processed, causing significant shockwaves.
Both Miao Hua and He Weidong originally came from the military stationed in Xiamen, Fujian province, namely the former 31st Group Army (originally under the Nanjing Military Region, now abolished), where they had close ties with Xi Jinping, who had served in Fujian for 17 years. He Weidong and Miao Hua were considered leaders of the Fujian clique in the military. He Weidong, in particular, has long been an important member of Xi Jinping’s core circle in the military, having served as the commander of the Eastern Theater Command, directly overseeing naval affairs in the Taiwan Strait.
Political commentator Chen Pokong, who resides in the United States, previously stated that individuals like He Weidong, Miao Hua, and Lin Xiangyang, all originating from the 31st Group Army, are undergoing this round of purges orchestrated by the Deputy Chairman of the Central Military Commission, Zhang Youxia, to eradicate Xi Jinping’s influences within the military.
When asked by Epoch Times in a previous interview, Zhao Lanjian mentioned that “Fujian is an important base for Xi Jinping, and with a large number of military officials in Fujian system running into trouble, it indicates that Xi has completely abandoned his former subordinates. Or there might be some anti-Xi forces in the military trying to strangle Xi Jinping’s core people.”
According to previous reports by the Epoch Times, legal expert Yuan Hongbing in Australia cited insider sources revealing that the power struggle for the 21st Congress of the CCP has already begun, where Xi Jinping originally intended to groom Miao Hua to succeed Zhang Youxia as Vice Chairman of the Military Commission. However, Miao Hua was discovered to be “politically disloyal,” leading to a significant blow to Xi Jinping.
It was disclosed that on the first day of Miao Hua’s interrogation, he lost control, staying up all night confessing, initially implicating over 80 military personnel. With the assistance of three secretaries, he later disclosed up to 1300 military personnel, including nearly a hundred high-ranking officials at the level of major general and lieutenant general, many of whom were personally promoted by Xi Jinping.
Yuan Hongbing stated that after Xi Jinping heard the confessions from Miao Hua, he turned “white-haired overnight”, indicating the intensity of the purging of Xi’s influences within the military far exceeding expectations.