China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA) has appointed Liu Sanjiang as its deputy director, reports 2Firsts.
Previously, Liu served as the director of the department of quality development at the State Administration for Market Regulation,
This appointment follows a series of corruption investigations targeting senior STMA officials.
The STMA is the country’s official regulatory body overseeing the tobacco industry and market, including NGPs such as e-cigarettes.
Zhang Jianmin, director of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration and general manager of China National Tobacco Corporation, met with a high-level BAT delegation in Beijing, according to Weixin
The companies reportedly held “friendly talks.”
Others in attendance included Wang Gongcheng, member of the Party Leadership Group of the National Bureau and deputy director, heads of the State Administration Office (foreign affairs department), the development planning department, China Tobacco Sales Corp. and China Tobacco International.
The Intermediate People’s Court of Dalian has sentenced He Zehua, former deputy chief of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, to death for taking bribes, reports Xinhua.
The sentence comes with a two-year reprieve, after which the penalty could be commuted to life imprisonment with no possibility of parole or further commutation.
He was also deprived of his political rights for life, all of his personal property was confiscated, and his illegal gains were turned over to the state treasury.
The court found that between 1998 and 2023, He took undue advantage of his various positions, including those as a senior official at local tobacco monopoly agencies, as well as the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration deputy chief, to illegally assist his connections in business operations, project contracting and personnel promotion and recruitment
In return, He accepted more than RMB943 million ($132.6 million) in money and gifts.
In its ruling, the court considered the large amounts of money involved and He’s cooperation with the investigators and in returning the illegal gains, which have been recovered in full.
Several STMA leaders are under investigation for corruption. Earlier this month, authorities arrested former STMA head Ling Chengxing and announced a probe into the activities of STMA Deputy Head Xu Ying.
Chinese authorities are investigating Xu Ying, deputy head of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, for suspected “severe violations of disciplines and laws,” reports China Daily, citing the Communist Party’s Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Commission of Supervision.
Xu started his career in the administration in 1988. In March 2014, he became the deputy head of the administration.
Earlier this month, law enforcement officers arrested former STMA head Ling Chengxing on suspicion of accepting bribes and abusing power.
Ling Chengxing, former head of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, has been arrested on suspicion of accepting bribes and abusing power, reports China Daily, citing a May 7 statement by the Supreme People’s Procuratorate.
Among other transgressions, Ling reportedly accepted banquets, sought benefits for relatives in employment and school admissions and secured benefits for others in the cadres selection and appointment.
Ling also accepted gifts, sought special treatment in transportation and medical care for his relatives and used his position to benefit others in business operations, employee hiring and job promotions.
In return, he accepted large amounts of property, according to the allegations.
Originally from Jiangxi province, Ling joined the Communist Party of China in 1977 and began working in 1980. He held positions, including executive vice governor of the province.
Ling was the head of China Tobacco from May 2013 until his retirement in July 2018. He was placed under investigation in October 2023.
In April, Ling was expelled from the Communist Party of China for violating the party’s disciplines and engaging in duty-related illegalities.
The Communist Party of China has expelled Ling Chengxing, former head of the State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, reports The China Daily, citing an April 22 announcement by the country’s top anti-graft watchdogs.
According to the Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Commission of Supervision, Ling violated the party’s disciplines, committed duty-related illegalities and is suspected of bribery and abuse of authority.
Among other transgressions, Ling accepted banquets, sought benefits for relatives in employment and school admissions, and secured benefits for others in the cadres selection and appointment, the agency said.
Liang also accepted gifts, sought special treatment in transportation and medical care for his relatives and used his position to benefit others in business operations, employee hiring and job promotions.
In return he accepted large amounts of property, according to the allegations.
Originally from Jiangxi province, Ling joined the Party in 1977 and began working in 1980. He held positions, including executive vice-governor of the province.
Ling was the head of China Tobacco from May 2013 until his retirement in July 2018. He was placed under investigation in October 2023.
The former deputy chief of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration, He Zehua, pled guilty to accepting bribes worth over CNY943 million ($130 million) during a trial in Liaoning province, reports China Daily. The case was publicly heard by the Dalian Intermediate People’s Court.
Prosecutors alleged that from 1998 to 2023, He used his various work posts in the country’s tobacco system to seek benefits for relevant people and departments in business operations, business contracting, job promotion and employment in return for monetary bribes. After leaving his work posts, prosecutors alleged, he sought profits for individuals and organizations in tobacco-related business contracting and bank solicitation for monetary bribes as well.
Former head of China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA) Ling Chengxing is under disciplinary review and supervisory investigation, reports China Daily.
Ling is being investigated on suspicion of violating Communist Party disciplines and China’s laws, according to the Communist Party of China Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Supervisory Commission.
Ling was head of the STMA from May 2013 to July 2018.
The STMA is on the list for the 20th CPC Central Committee’s second round of inspection, which began Oct. 10, and the eighth inspection team of this round recently began its work at the administration.
China continues to grapple with significant tobacco consumption, despite adopting the World Health Organization’s Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC) two decades ago, reports The Straits Times.
In November 2014, the State Council released a draft on national tobacco control guidelines to meet its obligations under the FCTC. However, the draft never progressed beyond the public consultation phase, which was supposed to be completed by the end of that year, according to the Singpore-based newspaper.
As the world’s largest tobacco producer and consumer, China still boasts an estimated 300 million smokers, constituting nearly a third of global smokers. According to The Straits Times, this phenomenon persists due to various factors including social norms, affordability of cigarettes and limited public education.
Despite efforts such as anti-smoking campaigns and banning smoking in government buildings, many individuals continue to smoke, encouraged by the ubiquity of tobacco shops, low-cost cigarettes and deeply rooted cultural practices.
The State Tobacco Monopoly Administration (STMA), which controls the tobacco industry, also acts as a significant employer, providing jobs to over half a million people across the nation.
In much of China, the tobacco industry is considered a prestigious employer, with its stable income, generous salaries and employee benefits. In surveys of fresh graduates, China’s big tobacco firms—largely state-owned enterprises—are consistently rated some of the best companies to work for, with degree holders happy to take on blue-collar jobs on the factory lines.
Manufacturing some 2.4 trillion cigarettes a year, China’s tobacco industry posted a profit of RMB132 billion ($18.3 billion) in profits in 2022, up nearly 12 percent from the year before.
STMA’s operational arm, the China National Tobacco Corp., does not report sales figures but posted a record taxable income of RMB1.44 trillion in 2022. By comparison, the second-highest taxpayer, the Industrial and Commercial Bank of China, reported taxable income of RMB109 billion.
While the anti-smoking lobby has been urging the government to sever the ties between the industry and its regulator, few expect that to happen, citing a lack of political will.
China’s State Tobacco Monopoly Administration released the Guidelines for Promoting the Building of Quality Assurance Systems for Exported Electronic Cigarette Products on July 20, according to 2Firsts, which published a translated version of the release.
The guidelines consist of 18 articles covering the following: