Praise for Bo Xilai in Chongqing as city faces fresh graft probe
Bo was jailed for life on corruption charges, but many residents in Chongqing look back fondly on his term as city chief as one of his successors is also accused of corruption
It does not take much to find people who still talk in reverential terms about Bo Xilai, Chongqing’s incarcerated and disgraced former Communist Party head who was removed from office more than five years ago.
By contrast, it is difficult to find anyone who has similar regard for Sun Zhengcai, who lost the same party job earlier this month after he was accused by Beijing of failing to rid the city of Bo’s influence and legacy.
People in this metropolis of 30 million remember Bo fondly as a can-do leader who improved law and order, turbo-charged the economy, and rejuvenated dilapidated old city quarters.
“Bo did a great job with law and order in the city,” said Tan Heping, one of the city’s dwindling number of bangbang, or “stick men”, who carry loads on bamboo poles up and down the city’s steep hillsides. “Sun is nowhere near as impressive, he is far from what Bo Xilai was. I can’t see what he has done.”
Both Bo and Sun were removed in the months ahead of the gathering of senior leaders at the Chinese Communist Party National Congress, which is held every five years and ratifies major leadership changes.
