China Mobile has appointed Xi Guohua as vice chairman and secretary of the company’s Communist Party of China (CPC) committee.
Xi succeeds Wang Jianzhou. Wang, who became secretary of the CPC committee in 2010 following a corruption scandal involving his…
China Mobile has appointed Xi Guohua as vice chairman and secretary of the company’s Communist Party of China (CPC) committee.
Xi succeeds Wang Jianzhou. Wang, who became secretary of the CPC committee in 2010 following a corruption scandal involving his predecessor Zhang Chunjiang, remains as chairman although his power will now be limited, according to reports.
As vice-minister of industry and information technology, Xi also oversaw internet censorship in his role as deputy head of a department looking after undesirable content including pornography, gambling and negative comments about the Chinese government, according to the Financial Times.
An investigation of the corruption allegations is ongoing, with several China Mobile executives being detained, but Wang has not been linked to any case, wrote the FT.
Xi’s appointment is seen as a political move, with China Mobile reportedly keen to develop the 4G network as soon as possible.
Currently, the state-owned operator uses a home-grown 3G network, while rival carriers use what is described as a faster and more reliable foreign technology.