By Li Deyan, Vision Times
The Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) National People’s Congress (NPC) concluded its latest session with an announcement that 19 officials had been stripped of their NPC delegate status and removed from related posts. Among them were nine senior military officers, including General Li Qiaoming.
Notably absent from the official notice, however, were any references to former Central Military Commission (CMC) Vice Chairman Zhang Youxia and CMC member Liu Zhenli. The two senior generals were placed under investigation on suspicion of “serious violations of discipline and law.”
RELATED: NPC Standing Committee Reviews Personnel Changes Amid Zhang Youxia Ousting
19 officials dismissed
On Feb. 26, following the 21st meeting of the 14th NPC Standing Committee in Beijing, authorities announced that 19 officials had been removed from their positions as NPC deputies. The list included both civilian and military officials.
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Among those dismissed were several former provincial and municipal leaders, including former Inner Mongolia Party Secretary Sun Shaocheng, former Nanchang CPPCC Chairman Xiao Yuwen, former Jiangsu Taiwan Affairs Office Director Lian Yueqin, former Chongqing propaganda official Cao Qingyao, former Chengdu Mayor Wang Fengchao, and others.
Several military figures also lost their NPC Standing Committee or special committee posts. Former Navy Commander Shen Jinlong and former Navy Political Commissar Qin Shengxiang were removed from their positions within the NPC Standing Committee. Former Air Force Political Commissar Yu Zhongfu was also dismissed from related posts.
9 military heads removed
The announcement included nine representatives from the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) system:
- Major General Bian Ruifeng, assistant director of the CMC Political Work Department
- Lieutenant General Wang Donghai, political commissar of the CMC National Defense Mobilization Department
- General Li Qiaoming
- Major General Ding Laifu, commander of the 73rd Group Army
- Admiral Shen Jinlong
- Admiral Qin Shengxiang
- General Yu Zhongfu
- Major General Yang Guang, commander of the Rocket Force’s 64th Base
- General Li Wei, former political commissar of the Information Support Force
All were stripped of their NPC delegate qualifications, and their concurrent posts within the NPC were revoked. Notably, both Li Qiaoming and Li Wei are members of the CCP’s 20th Central Committee. Authorities had not previously announced their retirement, yet both were absent from the CCP’s Fourth Plenary Session in October 2025.
Meanwhile, Shen Jinlong, Yu Zhongfu, and Qin Shengxiang (though retired) were current NPC Standing Committee members. All three had also been absent from several recent NPC Standing Committee meetings.
According to state media outlet Xinhua, the session also approved the removal of Major General Liu Shaoyun from his post as president of the Military Court. At least two other retired senior generals, He Ping, former Eastern Theater Command political commissar, and Zheng Weiping, former Strategic Support Force political commissar, were absent from the session.
Silence on Zhang Youxia and Liu Zhenli
More striking than the dismissals themselves was the conspicuous omission of any mention of Zhang Youxia or Liu Zhenli. Zhang, formerly vice chairman of the Central Military Commission, was officially reported to have fallen from power on Jan. 24. Liu Zhenli, a CMC member and former Army commander, has also been widely rumored to be under investigation.
Yet the NPC announcement did not reference either man, nor did it revoke their NPC delegate status or state-related military positions.
An X platform blogger known as “Quantum Leap” commented: “Earlier this month, the NPC convened an emergency meeting. Almost everyone believed this was Xi Jinping seeking formal endorsement from the NPC to swiftly take down Zhang Youxia and calm turmoil within the Party, government, and military. But this session said not a single word about Zhang or Liu. Even more strangely, more than twenty days have passed, and several NPC announcements have been issued, yet still no information on Zhang or Liu! Can anyone explain, is this normal?”
Another netizen responded: “It shows Xi’s attempt to purge Zhang did not go through—it’s stuck, stalled, unfinished.”
Rumors and counterclaims
Online speculation has intensified in recent weeks, including unverified claims that Army Commander Li Qiaoming attempted a coup. In response, X user “New Heights” wrote: “If Xi Jinping and his wife had been arrested, such a major event would have been known to the United States immediately and publicly disclosed. Yet so far, the White House continues planning Trump’s April visit to China. This makes the likelihood of Xi and his wife being arrested almost zero.”
On Feb. 26, another blogger, “Sato Peng,” wrote: “After disappearing for nearly a year, Army Commander Li Qiaoming has finally reappeared in public view, not by landing safely, but by being stripped of his NPC delegate status. This was not announced separately but included among eight other generals, lieutenant generals, and major generals removed from the NPC list. Since Xi Jinping restructured the PLA in 2015, the Army has had four commanders: Li Zuocheng, Han Weiguo, Liu Zhenli, and Li Qiaoming. Liu Zhenli has officially fallen. Han Weiguo is awaiting announcement. Li Qiaoming has now effectively been officially announced.”
The removal of nine senior officers, combined with the silence regarding Zhang and Liu, suggests that the reshuffling within the PLA remains incomplete.
Whether this reflects an ongoing purge, internal resistance, or shifting power balances within the military hierarchy remains unclear. What is evident is that the CCP leadership continues to manage sensitive military developments with selective disclosure.
Editorial note: Views expressed in this article are the opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Vision Times.
