Beijing, Oct 27: Xinhua reported that Li Keqiang, the former Premier of China, passed away due to a sudden heart attack in Shanghai. Li Keqiang, 68 years old, had been a member of the Standing Committee of the Political Bureau of the 17th, 18th, and 19th Communist Party of China central committees. He had stepped down from his role as Premier less than a year before his passing.
Li Keqiang, once considered a potential top leader, had been intentionally kept out of the limelight for years to avoid overshadowing President Xi Jinping, who had been accumulating increasing power during his tenure.
Many believe that Li Keqiang’s entry into the Communist Party had been motivated by a desire to contribute to his country, but he faced challenges and limitations due to bureaucratic red-tape within the party. His passing raises questions about the future of China’s private sector and the broader economic reforms he had advocated for, as reported by the Singapore Post.
Experts suggest that Li Keqiang might be the last Premier of his kind, with an emphasis on economics-focused governance, in contrast to Xi Jinping’s more ideological and authoritarian approach.
Li Keqiang had already exited the Communist Party’s influential Politburo Standing Committee the previous October, despite not having reached retirement age, according to the Singapore Post.
During his farewell to around 800 senior government officials, Li had remarked, “Heaven is looking at what humans are doing. The firmament his eyes.”
Experts believe that Li Keqiang had the potential to oppose Xi Jinping’s deviations from the “reform and opening” policy initiated in 1978 but displayed little courage to do so, as noted by the Singapore Post.
Li Keqiang’s successor, Li Qiang, is known for his close ties to Xi Jinping and is particularly recognized for his strict enforcement of lengthy COVID lockdowns in Shanghai.
