Former Liaison Office director under investigation

Li Gang

A report issued by the National People’s Congress (NPC) of China stated that the former director of the Liaison Office in Macau, Li Gang, has been under investigation for violation of the party’s discipline.

The report announced that Li has also been removed from his position as an NPC member for being suspected of having severely violated the party’s disciplinary guidelines.

On August 22, China’s State Council removed Li Gang from his former position as deputy director of the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office. However, no reasons were given regarding Li’s removal.

Li Gang, born in 1955, first become involved in SAR affairs in 1998. From 1998 to 2001, Li was a secretary responsible for Hong Kong, Macau and Taiwan cultural affairs.

Between 2001 and 2003, Li was the deputy director of the news office of the State Council. From 2003 to 2012, Li was the deputy director of the Liaison Office in Hong Kong.

In 2012, he was assigned to Macau to become the deputy director of the Liaison Office in Macau, and two years after, in 2014, he was promoted to director of the Macau Liaison Office.

According to a report by the Hong Kong 01 news service, Li’s move from the Macau Liaison Office to the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office already triggered the outsiders’ assumptions concerning Li’s political life, as the Overseas Chinese Affairs Office is often regarded as a department which has less work than the Liaison Office.