CHINA:Chen Liangyu, the expelled former head of the Shanghai Communist Party, has been condemned for "totally betraying" party principles and can expect a harsh sentence when he is made an example of at a key party congress in the autumn.
In a forthright statement released on the Xinhua news agency and which was also prominently covered on the state broadcaster, CCTV, Mr Chen was described as "morally decadent".
"His activities seriously violated the discipline of the party, damaged the interests of the people and the image of the party, and were a vile social influence," the party said.
The highest-level party official to be dismissed in more than a decade, Mr Chen's descent from the pinnacle of the Communist elite in China's biggest city to corrupt pariah is the culmination of a complicated power play within the ruling party.
President Hu Jintao is gearing up for a party congress in coming months that should give him five more years as national party chief. Mr Chen's disgrace and seemingly inevitable conviction appear likely to help the president's efforts to consolidate his grip on power. Shanghai is the traditional power base of Mr Hu's predecessor, Jiang Zemin, who retains an influence in the party.
Mr Chen was also removed from all his government positions. He was forced out last year after an investigation into his involvement in a high-profile pension scandal in Shanghai that saw dozens of people arrested.
The inquiry was a high-profile political event and a tactical show of strength by Mr Hu. About 100 investigators from the central government in Beijing arrived in the financial capital and took over a hotel while they went through the pension books.
Mr Chen now looks set to be prosecuted over the alleged misuse of €290 million in pension funds.
Xia Zanzhong, a deputy head of the party's central commission of discipline inspection, said his downfall was a warning to officials to accept scrutiny and resist temptations offered by the country's expanding market economy.
The new leader of the Shanghai party, Xi Jinping, has urged cadres "to resolutely support the centre's decision and maintain a high level of unity with the party centre ideologically, politically and in your behaviour".
The investigation found Mr Chen had abused his power by moving pension funds to private companies illegally. He also helped private companies buy stakes in state-owned enterprises, breached planning laws, accepted bribes, and was involved in "philandering with women" and "trading sexual favours for power".