On the eve of the Chinese New Year, Gong Wenmi, the former Secretary of the Shaoyang Municipal Party Committee in Hunan Province, was investigated. Following the news, some local businesses and shops hung banners that read “Rejoice! Former Municipal Party Secretary Gong Wenmi Has Officially Fallen from Power.” Many local residents expressed that they had been waiting for this day for a long time.
On January 24th, the authorities in Hunan Province announced that Gong Wenmi, a former member of the Provincial Committee of the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference and Deputy Secretary-General, was suspected of serious violations of discipline and law, and is currently under investigation. The authorities reported that he had “voluntarily confessed to the problems.”
Almost simultaneously, Gong Wenmi’s wife, Zhou Liping, a former level-two inspector at the Hunan Provincial Department of Commerce, was also investigated for suspected serious violations of discipline and law.
Gong Wenmi served as the Mayor and Secretary of the Municipal Party Committee of Shaoyang for 10 years (from 2012 to July 2021).
On February 7th, a post by the blogger “Watching the Tide of the River” revealed that after news of Gong Wenmi’s fall from power spread, flowers bloomed at the entrance of the Shaoyang Municipal Party Committee, and banners with “Rejoice! Former Municipal Party Secretary Gong Wenmi Has Officially Fallen from Power!” stood out prominently. The suppressed emotions of the people could finally be released.
In addition to businesses celebrating with banners, Xiao Songhai, an official from the disciplinary inspection and supervision department in Shaoyang’s political circle, wrote a poem expressing his feelings about Gong Wenmi’s fall from power.
Quatrain:
Hearing the old thief Gong’s fall,
After three years of anticipation,
Once it became reality, joy spread everywhere.
Betraying seven million people,
The remaining life will not be cold behind iron bars!
The article mentioned that Xiao Songhai was the first insider official in Shaoyang to publicly criticize Gong Wenmi.
Xiao Songhai had been humiliated by Gong Wenmi, leading to escalated conflicts between the two.
During his 10-year tenure in Shaoyang, Gong Wenmi presided over a chaotic officialdom. The aforementioned blogger’s post stated that Gong Wenmi appointed only close acquaintances, which drew criticism from the public. For instance:
1. A nurse, R, was promoted from Deputy Head Nurse to Deputy Secretary of the District Party Committee.
2. A woman, G, was directly promoted to Deputy Secretary of the County Party Committee, bypassing the County Committee members.
3. A school principal and a newspaper department head were promoted to County Committee members and propaganda department heads.
In August 2021, Gong Wenmi was transferred from Shaoyang. Less than a month ago, a major incident occurred at the Municipal Party Committee’s courtyard: “Gong Wenmi was slapped twice by a female cadre with the surname Y.” This incident sparked widespread discussions.
Since last year, several officials in Shaoyang have been investigated, including Qin Lijun, former member of the Standing Committee of the Municipal People’s Congress in Shaoyang, Shen Zhiding, former Deputy Mayor of Shaoyang, Wang Yonghong, former Standing Committee member of the Municipal Party Committee, and former Executive Deputy Mayor, Liu Jun, Secretary of Longhui County and level-two inspector. Qin Lijun, Shen Zhiding, and Wang Yonghong had all worked under or alongside Gong Wenmi during his leadership in Shaoyang.