Recently, a flurry of officials in Xuzhou City, Jiangsu Province have been investigated, with former Xuzhou City Party Secretary Zhou Tiegen being implicated. He had worked alongside Wang Hao, the former vice chairman of the Jiangsu Provincial Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC), who was taken down four months ago.
On September 14, former Xuzhou City Party Secretary Zhou Tiegen was investigated for alleged violations of law. Zhou Tiegen had worked in various positions in Nantong, Wuxi, Xuzhou, and others. He had served as the director of the General Office of the Nantong Municipal Party Committee, the secretary of the Dong County Party Committee, a member of the Wuxi Municipal Party Committee, and the secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission, among other roles.
At the end of 2015, Zhou Tiegen was appointed as the Deputy Secretary of the Xuzhou City Party Committee, the Party Group Secretary, Deputy Mayor, and Acting Mayor. In January 2016, he became the Mayor. In April 2018, Zhou Tiegen was appointed as the Party Secretary of the Xuzhou City Committee in Jiangsu Province and stepped down in 2021. He then took on roles such as the Director of the Finance and Economics Committee of the 13th Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress and the Director of the Social Construction Committee of the 14th Jiangsu Provincial People’s Congress.
Several colleagues who worked with Zhou Tiegen in Xuzhou have been investigated this year. On May 20, Wang Hao, a member of the CPPCC Party Group and Vice Chairman of the Jiangsu Provincial Committee, was placed under investigation. Wang Hao had served as the Executive Deputy Mayor of Xuzhou City and the Deputy Secretary of the Municipal Government Party Group, while Zhou Tiegen was the Mayor at that time. Wang Hao had also been the Chairman of the Xuzhou Municipal CPPCC and held positions such as the Mayor and Party Secretary of Suqian City.
Also recently investigated was Feng Xingzhen, the Party Secretary and Chairman of Xuzhou Mining Group Co., Ltd. According to the official website of the Jiangsu Commission for Discipline Inspection on July 25, Feng Xingzhen was suspected of violating the law and was under investigation. From December 2013 to February 2017, Feng Xingzhen served as the Deputy Mayor and member of the Municipal Government Party Group in Xuzhou.
In 2016, both Zhou Tiegen and Feng Xingzhen were disciplined for illegal production and sales of “tangshan steel” at a steel company in Xinyi City, Xuzhou. The following year, Feng Xingzhen was disciplined again for environmental issues when he was the Deputy Mayor of Xuzhou City.
On August 23, Gao Nianzhi, the former member of the Copper Mountain District Committee and Deputy District Chief in Xuzhou, was also removed from office. Public records show that Gao Nianzhi started working in July 1988 and had held positions such as Secretary of the Danji Town Party Committee in Tongshan District and Deputy District Chief in charge of the Liguozhen Town Party Committee.
On June 21, Zhu Xinyong, the Deputy Director of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress in Peixian, Xuzhou, was taken down. Zhu Xinyong had worked in Peixian for a long time, serving as a member of the Party Group and Deputy Director (concurrently) of the Party Committee of the Hancheng Scenic Area Management Office in Peixian. He was promoted to a member of the Party Group and Deputy County Chief of the Peixian Government in February 2019, became a member of the Standing Committee of the Peixian Party Committee in July 2021, and was appointed the Deputy Director of the Standing Committee of the People’s Congress in Peixian in January 2024.
On June 7, Su Weiping, the Deputy Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission and Deputy Director of the Supervision Commission in Xuzhou City, was also investigated. Su Weiping had previously served in positions such as the Deputy Director of the Supervision Commission in Xuzhou City, the Deputy Secretary of the Discipline Inspection Commission, the Deputy Director of the Supervision Commission, and a second-level inspector.
On February 19, Zhu Mingquan, the Party Secretary of the Yunlong District Committee in Xuzhou City, was investigated. Zhu Mingquan had worked in the Yunlong District for a long time, holding positions such as the Secretary of the Party School of the Yunlong District Committee, a member of the Party Committee of the District People’s Procuratorate, secretary of the District Government Office, Deputy Director of the District Government Affairs Management Office, member of the District Committee, Secretary of the Political and Legal Affairs Committee, Deputy Secretary-General of the Xuzhou City Government, a member of the Party Group of the Municipal Government Office, Director of the Municipal Port Office, Deputy Secretary of the Suining County Party Committee, Acting County Chief, County Chief, and Party Secretary of the Yunlong District Committee.
The shocking “Iron Chain Woman” incident that went viral online in January 2022 took place in Fengxian County, Xuzhou. A mentally disturbed woman held captive with iron chains, who had given birth to eight children, was filmed and sparked huge controversy. However, as investigations were underway to reveal the truth, the Chinese authorities resorted to forceful measures, imposing a media blackout and arresting independent reporters attempting coverage, leading to the suppression of information. The fate of the Iron Chain Woman remains unknown to this day. In the aftermath of the incident, the authorities dismissed Lou Hai, the then Party Secretary of Fengxian County, along with Su Bei, the Director of the Propaganda Department, and Zheng Chunwei, the County Chief, for concealing facts and spreading misinformation. The Iron Chain Woman incident was left unresolved.