Wukan village’s future under threat as ex-cadres retake party reins
New round of elections also clouded by recent appointments of old regime bosses
Wukan’s old guard are slowly retaking control of the village government, sparking fears of a return to the old regime where residents lived in fear of land grabs and where corruption was rampant – which a landmark democratic election two years ago sought to wipe out.
Last Friday, Xue Yubao, one of the former village bosses, was appointed by higher-level authorities in Donghai township to be the next deputy party secretary, while four of his associates will also be part of the nine-member Wukan party committee, according to deputy village chiefs Hong Ruichao and Yang Semao.
Hong and Yang were among the leaders of the grass-roots revolt in 2011.
No one told us what the meeting was about and we were shocked to know the old cadres were returning to office
Hong said he felt betrayed as he was kept in the dark about the new appointments and was only informed at a village meeting.
"No one told us what the meeting was about and we were shocked to know the old cadres were returning to office,” he said.
The contentious appointments of ex-deputy village chief Xue and the other cadres came ahead of a scheduled new round of elections in Wukan, after the democratically elected representatives’ tenure ends on March 6.
