A Chinese official born in the 1970s and once discussed as a potential next-generation leader has come under investigation, the latest in a string of falls among so-called “post-70s” cadres. The official is Fei Gaoyun, the Communist Party secretary of Hefei, the capital of Anhui province, which has recently emerged as a high-tech hub.
China’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection said on its website on the 6th that Fei is being investigated on suspicion of “serious discipline violations.” Fei has not appeared in public since April 19, when he presided over a Hefei party committee meeting.
After the announcement, the Anhui provincial party committee and the Hefei party committee each held meetings to express support for the party center’s decision. The Hefei party committee said it would “strengthen management of family members, close associates and staff” and build “a clean and healthy relationship between government and businesses.”
Fei, born in August 1971 and a native of Huai’an in Jiangsu province, spent about 30 years in public service in Jiangsu. He served as head of the organization department in Nantong, mayor and party secretary of Changzhou, and executive vice governor of Jiangsu. He moved to Anhui in 2023, served as executive vice governor there, and became Hefei party secretary in April last year.
The article said Fei was known to have built ties in Jiangsu with senior leaders including Premier Li Qiang, United Front Work Department head Shi Taifeng and State Councilor Wu Zhenglong. It said Fei was promoted to Changzhou party secretary in 2017 when Li and Shi were serving as Jiangsu party secretary and governor, respectively, and later worked as a vice governor during Wu’s tenure as Jiangsu governor.
Fei drew attention after being elected an alternate member of the Central Committee at the Communist Party’s 20th National Congress. Expectations had been high that he would enter the Central Committee and be tapped for a key central post at next year’s 21st Party Congress, joining a group of rising “post-70s” officials. He ultimately did not avoid the party’s disciplinary crackdown.
On April 30, another “post-70s” official seen as a future leadership contender, Li Yunze, head of the National Financial Regulatory Administration at ministerial rank, was demoted over discipline violations, the report said.
With the 21st Party Congress and a leadership reshuffle ahead next year, China’s anti-graft drive appears to be intensifying. The discipline commission said that, in addition to Fei, two other senior officials were also being investigated on suspicion of discipline violations: Zhandui, a vice mayor of Lhasa in the Tibet Autonomous Region, and Hu Chaowen, party secretary of Enshi Tujia and Miao Autonomous Prefecture in Hubei province.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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