SOE official Hu Jiyong expelled from post

Hu Jiyong, who previously served as executive director, general manager and Party secretary at one of the subsidiary companies of China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), has been expelled from the Party and removed from public positions for disciplinary violations, according to an official statement.

The decision was released by Beijing's CNPC project management company on Friday, one month after Hu, former top official of the Huanqiu Project Management (Beijing) Co Ltd (HQPMC) affiliated with the company, involved in the scandal.

On June 7, a video clip showing a man strolling along a street in Chengdu, capital of Sichuan province, holding hands with a young woman went viral.

Netizens quickly identified the man as Hu, from HQPMC, who was on a business trip to Chengdu, the woman surnamed Dong who is seen wearing a long, pink off-the-shoulder dress, was an employee of the HQPMC.

The incident soon topped the most-searched list on a number of social media websites, with many netizens attempting to divulge more information about the pair.

In the afternoon of that day, Hu was placed under investigation by the disciplinary department of the CNPC (Beijing) project management company.

In the Friday's statement, the company said that Hu violated disciplines of the Communist Party of China. He had an improper relationship with Dong during his marriage, and changed the schedule of his business trip to take the opportunity for touring, it added.

Considering the two breached the Party and the company's disciplines, causing serious negative effects, the company decided to expel Hu from the Party and dismiss him from work posts, with termination of the labor contract with non-Party member Dong, it said.

The company stressed that it will continue attaching importance to the Party's disciplines and the fight against corruption, providing more education and strong management for officials and employees.

Those who violate the disciplines will be severely punished by the company with zero-tolerance, it added.