Top Chinese cabinet official Yang Jing’s sacking ‘linked to missing billionaire Xiao Jianhua’
State Councillor has been removed from administrative posts and demoted
Yang Jing, secretary general of China’s cabinet, has been sacked partly because of links to troubled businessman Xiao Jianhua, sources told the South China Morning Post.
Yang, who also holds the title of state councillor and is a top assistant to Premier Li Keqiang, has been removed from his administrative posts, which decide his perks, and demoted from deputy state to ministerial level, Xinhua reported on Saturday.
The unusual announcement was made just ahead of a key government reshuffle next month, when Yang is due to step down from his posts. He was also put on one year’s probation within the party.
Xinhua said Yang was sacked for “serious violations of Communist Party discipline”. The report said he was accused of colluding with “law-breaking businessmen and society people”, without elaborating – although the latter usually refers to those without stable or lawful employment.
But sources told the Post that Yang’s fall from grace is connected to missing billionaire Xiao Jianhua, who is believed to be “helping authorities with an investigation”.
