As the Chinese Communist party’s 18th Central Committee gathers for its year-end “plenum”, more than 20 original members will not be there — and many of the 350-odd remaining attendees will be wondering if this is the last hurrah of the man responsible for their comrades’ disappearance.
As head of the party’s anti-graft watchdog since 2012, Wang Qishan has spearheaded an unprecedented crackdown on corruption that has ended the careers of more than 150 party and government officials, military officers and state sector business executives with vice-minister rank or higher. The fallen include 10 full and 13 “alternate” Central Committee members.
This week’s plenum will focus on party discipline, Mr Wang’s main brief as head of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection. Although technically ranked sixth in the party hierarchy, in terms of real clout the 69-year-old CCDI head is widely regarded as second only to Chinese president and party general secretary Xi Jinping.