BEIJING: China’s ruling Communist Party wrapped up its twice-a-decade congress on Saturday, cementing Xi Jinping’s iron grip on power and revealing a new Central Committee missing two key officials lacking close ties to the leader.
Xi, 69, is poised to clinch a third five-year leadership term as party general secretary, breaking with precedent and solidifying his place as China’s most powerful ruler since Mao Zedong, the founding leader of the People’s Republic.
The new leadership will be unveiled at around noon (0400 GMT) on Sunday when Xi walks into a room of journalists at the Great Hall of the People, followed by the other members of the new Standing Committee in descending order of rank.
In an unusual moment during the closing ceremony, former President Hu Jintao, seated next to Xi, was escorted off the stage. Looking distressed, Hu, 79, appeared to resist leaving as stewards escorted him out. He had looked slightly unsteady last Sunday when he was assisted onto the same stage.
The party’s new 205-member Central Committee, elected by delegates at the end of the week-long congress, did not include outgoing Premier Li Keqiang or former Guangdong party boss Wang Yang, who had been seen as a potential replacement as premier.
Analysts said their omissions were signs the powerful Politburo Standing Committee, to be revealed on Sunday, is likely to be stacked with people close to Xi.
“The main theme of this congress, as seen in the constitutional amendment and the report, is to highlight the core status of Xi,” said Chen Gang, senior research fellow at the East Asian Institute in Singapore.
“With this congress, Xi’s authority grows even more. Going forward, we will see more concentration of power around Xi and around the centre,” he said.
