China names acting mayor for Tianjin after bribery scandal

China has named an acting mayor for the northern city of Tianjin, state media said on Tuesday, months after the mayor was jailed for corruption.

The port city of Tianjin, close to Beijing, has ambitions to become a financial hub for northern China and is one of four areas designated a municipality, along with Beijing, Shanghai and Chongqing, giving it the same high status as a province.

Zhang Guoqing, the former mayor of Chongqing, was appointed acting mayor and deputy mayor of Tianjin, the People’s Daily newspaper said.

Zhang previously worked as general manager of North Industry Corporation, China’s biggest weapons manufacturer, supplier and exporter.

A Chinese court in September jailed the former Tianjin mayor, Huang Xingguo, for 12 years for accepting bribes.

Huang was made mayor of Tianjin in 2007 and took on the additional role of acting party secretary in 2014, but he had not yet been permanently appointed – an unusually long time in provincial politics.