'Bo Xilai tarnished image of China'

Beijing: Months after the sacking of hardliner Bo Xilai for indiscipline, the Communist Party of China continues to battle his legacy with a senior leader blaming him for tarnishing the image of the ruling party and the country.

Bo’s case has “greatly tarnished the image of the Party and the nation and have had a grave impact on Chongqing’s reform and development,” Zhang Dejiang, who replaced Bo as head of the city said today.

Bo, 62, was sacked in March and is under investigation for breaking party discipline. His wife is a suspect in the death of British businessman Neil Heywood.

Zhang replaced Bo to become the city’s top official in March after the former Party secretary was suspected of being involved in serious disciplinary violations.

Bo’s membership in the Communist Party of China’s Central Committee and its Political Bureau has been suspended. The CPC Central Commission for Discipline Inspection has filed his case for investigation.

Zhang said that the work of the city’s party committee had some “problems and deficiencies”.

“We must strictly separate Chongqing’s achievements over the past five years and the painstaking efforts of local officials and residents from the three cases,” Zhang said apparently referring to Bo’s image as builder of Chongqing city which has become the most developed in China.

“On the other hand, we must sincerely draw lessons from those cases and earnestly improve our work,” Zhang told The 4th Congress of the CPC Chongqing Municipal Committee till recently the stronghold of Bo.

“We are resolved to build a more beautiful Chongqing under the leadership of the CPC Central Committee, with Hu Jintao as the general secretary,” Zhang said.

Larger than Taiwan in size, Chongqing has a population of 33 million who are mostly farmers living outside the main urban areas.

Before the scandal, Bo had the image of hardline leader trying to revive the old Maoist ideology practically discarded by the party.

PTI