A former provincial-rank official and a well-connected
businessman were expelled Wednesday from China's national
parliament over alleged involvement in corruption.
The Standing Committee of the National People's Congress (NPC) on Wednesday voted to pass local
parliamentary decisions to strip the NPC membership of Liu Weiming,
68, a provincial-rank official of Guangdong Province, and Deng
Zhonghua, 49, president of Hunan Chendian International Development
Co., Ltd.
Liu was dismissed for "seriously violating discipline",
according to the decision made earlier by the provincial people's
congress in Guangdong.
Previous media reports say Liu has been involved in economic
crimes. He had been expelled from the Communist Party of China.
Liu served as vice governor of the economic boom province of
Guangdong from 1988 to 1998 and vice chairman of the Guangdong
Provincial Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative
Conference (CPPCC) from 1998 to 2003.
In a separate case, Deng was suspected of taking and offering
huge bribes after being investigated by anti-corruption authorities
in central Hunan Province. The former vice president of the Hunan
company, Liu Xiaowen, had been arrested for bribe scandals.
Deng was appointed president of Hunan Chendian International
Development Co., Ltd. in March 2004.
(Xinhua News Agency February 28, 2007)