["News Says Tianjin Party Committee Secretary Zhang Gaoli Has Trouble"]
As this centre has learned, last night news suddenly spread in Beijing and Tianjin that Zhang Gaoli, member of the Political Bureau and secretary of the Tianjin Municipal Party Committee, was subjected to "control" yesterday. Today his secretary denied the allegation that Zhang Gaoli was "not feeling well," and Tianjin's political arena remained calm. Meanwhile, however, this centre has received a confirmed report saying that one of Zhang Gaoli's close friends, Zhang Simin, who is a wealthy businessman, went abroad after former Shenzhen Mayor Xu Zongheng had met with trouble. He refused to comply with the order of the department concerned asking him to come back to be investigated.
According to information obtained by this centre, about 9 pm last night, all of a sudden, news began to circulate in Beijing and Tianjin that Zhang Gaoli was subjected to "control." Last night several military helicopters flew between Beijing and Tianjin. But today the political arena in Tianjin was calm. This afternoon, in answer to an inquiry, Zhang Gaoli's secretary denied the allegation that Zhang Gaoli was "not feeling well." But he refused to confirm that Zhang Gaoli was in Tianjin today. Zhang Gaoli, 62, began his official career in 1985 in Guangdong. Between 1997 and 2001, he was secretary of the Shenzhen City Party Committee.
This centre has received the confirmed report that Zhang Simin, a close friend of Zhang Gaoli's and board chairman of the Shenzhen-based Neptunus Group, went abroad after Xu Zongheng had met with trouble. He refused to obey the order of the department concerned, asking him to come back to receive investigation. Both Zhang Simin and Xu Zongheng are among the six National People's Congress deputies from Shenzhen City. Another National People's Congress deputy from Shenzhen, Qiu Mei, who is also vice chairman of the Standing Committee of the Shenzhen City People's Congress, revealed today that, over the past 10 days or so since Xu Zongheng met with trouble, she had tried to contact Zhang Simin, but failed. She also said that the Shenzhen City People's Congress was unable to contact Zhang Simin. Zhang Simin's new secretary, Miss Liu, told us that, during the past 10 days, Zhang Simin had been out of the country and stayed overseas. In 2000, Zhang Simin was cited by Forbes as the ninth richest man among the 50 most wealthy people in China. According to Zhang Simin himself, he started his career with 3,000 yuan on 8 July 1989. Most people in Shenzhen know that he got rich by buying and selling land. The Neptunus Bioengineering Co., Ltd., under the Neptunus Group is listed in the Hong Kong stock market (Neptunus Bioengineering, SZ: 000078). Before Xu Zongheng met with trouble, the company had spread the news that it was prepared to produce the H1N1 influenza vaccine, triggering a sharp rise in its stock price.
It is not known whether, after being subjected to "double stipulations" [shuang gui, giving an account of one's wrong doing at a stipulated place and time], Xu Zongheng will make confessions implicating Zhang Gaoli and another incumbent senior official with an even stronger background in Guangdong. According to informed sources, however, Xu Zongheng's secretary, Qiu Mengjun, has already revealed many things after he was subjected to control. In view of this, the development of Xu Zongheng's case is quite hard to predict.
15 June 2009
6:15 pm