The former director of the State Tobacco Administration, Ling Chengxing, who made a living by smoking and was addicted to smoking, has been prosecuted for accepting bribes since he served as a member of the Standing Committee of Jiangxi Province.

After being investigated for over a year, Ling Chengxing, former Director of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, has recently been indicted for prosecution.

According to a November 25 message from the Supreme People’s Procuratorate website, Ling Chengxing, former member of the Party Leadership Group of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, former Party Secretary and Director of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, and former General Manager of China National Tobacco Corporation, was investigated by the National Supervision Commission for alleged bribery and abuse of power by personnel of a state-owned company. Following designation by the Supreme People’s Procuratorate, the case was reviewed for prosecution by the Changchun Municipal People’s Procuratorate in Jilin Province. Recently, the Changchun Municipal People’s Procuratorate has filed an indictment with the Changchun Intermediate People’s Court in Jilin Province.

The message stated that the procuratorial organs indicted and accused Ling Chengxing of using his positions as Member of the Standing Committee and Vice Governor of Jiangxi Province, Party Secretary and Director of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, and General Manager of China National Tobacco Corporation to seek benefits for others and illegally accept property from others, with the amount being particularly huge; He abused his power for personal gain, causing serious losses to the state-owned company and resulting in particularly significant losses to the state. He should be held criminally liable for bribery and abuse of power by personnel of a state-owned company according to the law.

Ling Chengxing (Photo from Justice Network)

The aforementioned official announcement showed that Ling Chengxing had been involved in bribery since he served as Member of the Standing Committee and Vice Governor of Jiangxi Province.

Public information revealed that Ling Chengxing, male, born in October 1957, is from Shanggao, Jiangxi. He joined the Communist Party of China in January 1977 and started working in December 1980. He is a graduate student majoring in economic management at the Central Party School.

He had long served in Jiangxi, successively holding positions such as Mayor of Fengcheng City, Deputy Director of the Jiangxi Provincial Economic Commission, Director (Manager) of the Jiangxi Provincial Tobacco Monopoly Administration (Company), and Assistant Governor of Jiangxi Province. In 2001, he became Vice Governor of Jiangxi Province, and in 2006, he served as Member of the Standing Committee and Executive Vice Governor of Jiangxi Provincial Party Committee. Later, in 2013, he was transferred to serve as a member of the Party Leadership Group of the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, Party Secretary and Director of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration until he stepped down in 2018.

On October 23, 2023, the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission announced that Ling Chengxing, former Party Secretary and Director of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, was suspected of serious discipline violations and law offenses and was currently under discipline review and supervisory investigation by the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission.

His “dual dismissal” announcement pointed out that Ling Chengxing lost his ideals and beliefs, deviated from the principles of the Party, and resisted organizational review; He ignored the spirit of the Central Eight-Point Rules, accepted banquets and lifestyle services provided by others in violation of regulations; He failed to report personal matters as required, sought benefits for relatives in employment and education, and sought benefits for others in the selection and appointment of cadres; He accepted gifts in violation of regulations and sought special treatment for relatives in transportation and medical care; He did not prioritize family values and failed to properly manage and educate his family members; He turned the public power entrusted by the Party and the people into a tool for personal gain, relied on the tobacco industry for personal profit, accepted money, used his position to seek benefits for others in business operations, employee recruitment, and position promotions, and illegally accepted huge amounts of property; He abused his power for personal gain, causing particularly significant losses to the state.