Military

Deputy head of Chinese shipbuilder sacked and expelled from Communist Party

Graft-buster finds Sun Bo guilty of trading power for financial gain and taking bribes

Sources say he was investigated for passing information about China’s first aircraft carrier to foreign intelligence agents

Minnie Chan

Minnie Chan

Updated: Tuesday, 18 Dec, 2018 1:54am

https://beta.scmp.com/news/china/military/article/2178403/deputy-head-chinese-shipbuilder-sacked-and-expelled-communist

Sun Bo was expelled from the party and sacked as general manager of CSIC over “serious violations of party discipline and causing great damage to the national interest”. Photo: HandoutSun Bo was expelled from the party and sacked as general manager of CSIC over “serious violations of party discipline and causing great damage to the national interest”. Photo: Handout

Sun Bo was expelled from the party and sacked as general manager of CSIC over “serious violations of party discipline and causing great damage to the national interest”. Photo: Handout

The deputy head of the state-owned firm developing China’s first home-grown aircraft carrier has been expelled from the Communist Party and sacked for alleged “serious violations of party discipline and causing great damage to the national interest”.

Sun Bo, who was general manager of China Shipbuilding Industry Corporation (CSIC), was found guilty of trading power for financial gain and accepting bribes, the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection, China’s top graft-buster, said in a statement on Monday.

But two sources close to the Chinese military told the South China Morning Post that Sun was investigated for allegedly passing confidential information about the Liaoning, China’s first aircraft carrier, to foreign intelligence agents.

“The whole Type 001A has been designed and built based on the original design and refitting experience of the Liaoning,” the source said. “All the staff at CSIC have been told not to say anything about Sun, so you can imagine how sensitive his case is.”

The Type 001A is still undergoing sea trials, and military experts expect it to be handed over to the Chinese navy before October next year – in time for celebrations marking the 70th anniversary of the founding of the People’s Republic of China.

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In its statement, the graft-buster also said Sun had been disloyal to the party, had taken part in “feudalistic superstitious activities” and had refused to cooperate with the investigation.

Sun, who attended a launch ceremony for the new aircraft carrier in April last year, was last seen in public on June 11, when he visited one of the shipbuilder’s subsidiaries, according to a report in Beijing Youth Daily.