China arrests former agriculture minister Tang Renjian for corruption

The Chinese flag is seen in this illustration taken May 30, 2022. (Reuters)

BEIJING: China has arrested its former agriculture minister and party secretary Tang Renjian for suspected bribery, the nation’s top prosecutor said on Tuesday, the latest official caught up in President Xi Jinping’s anti-corruption crackdown.
“Recently, the Supreme People’s Procuratorate made an arrest decision on Tang Renjian on suspicion of taking bribes in accordance with the law,” the Supreme People’s Procuratorate said in a statement.
The case, which has been concluded by the National Supervisory Commission, is being further processed.
Tang’s downfall was unusually swift and comes amid Xi’s sweeping anti-graft campaign which has also targeted former defence minister Li Shangfu and his predecessor Wei Fenghe.
The 62-year-old Tang was removed from the leadership roster of the ministry’s website in May and expelled from the Communist Party six months later.
State media have reported that Tang was found to have accepted gifts and money in violation of regulations, using his authority to provide assistance to his relatives’ business activities, and interfering in judicial activities.
Tang was last publicly seen three days before he was investigated while in office, the Beijing Daily reported.
Tang was governor of the western province of Gansu from 2017 to 2020 before being named minister of agriculture and rural affairs, according to official biographies.
As minister, Tang was responsible for strengthening the nation’s food security policies, and had rolled out the use of genetically-modified crops and a food security law.