Trade in power and money harms the nation

When the corruption case of Gu Junshan, former deputy head of the logistics department of the People's Liberation Army, was made public earlier this year, I was shocked by the fact, revealed by insiders, that the lieutenant general and veteran Communist Party member "never believed in the political creed" of the atheist party but instead "worshipped ghosts and deities".

Anxious to decriminalize and safeguard the wealth he had garnered through embezzlement and bribery, Gu often invited fortunetellers and sorceresses to his home for advice. He built an imposing tomb for his father at a site said to have good feng shui in the hope of bringing good luck to his family. After he was arrested, he hid a piece of peach wood in his pocket, as the Chinese words for peach and escape are homophones - both are pronounced tao.

Since my childhood in the early 1950s, my generation was told that communists should devote their lives to the service of the Chinese people and should draw strength and confidence from this political creed. So I wondered how such a man as Gu who hadn't the least trait of communism in his character could have been promoted to such a high rank and entrusted with such great power.