Discipline authorities in Hubei say they have uncovered five cases of party members and public employees getting caught up in gambling or playing cards for money. Officials warned that this kind of behavior hurts discipline and damages public trust.
In a notice published August 16, the Hubei Provincial Commission for Discipline Inspection and Supervision said that rectifying gambling and card playing among officials had become “an important means of strengthening work style,” and that cases were being investigated jointly with public security organs.
Hubei officials accused of illegal gambling
One case concerned Cheng Yidong, deputy mayor of Laocheng Town in Songzi City. In June Cheng took part in a mahjong game for money during a lunch gathering, and by July received a party warning.
Another case in Xiantao involved Li Zhihu, the Party secretary and principal of Xialiubu School, who was found to have played mahjong with cash on the line several times over the Spring Festival holiday. Li was also given a warning in June.
In Xiaogan, Fang Meng, a staff member at the Xiangnan District Civil Affairs Bureau’s Elderly Services Center, asked for leave in May, saying there were family matters to attend to. Instead, Fang went to a teahouse and played mahjong with money involved, and later received a warning as punishment.
And in Ezhou, Ding Jian, who works at the local land resources office, was caught by police gambling with cards in a shop in March. Ding was fined 500 yuan ($70) and also given a party warning.
The most serious case involved Wang Guixue, a former deputy secretary of a village party branch in Qianjiang. From early 2024 until March this year, Wang repeatedly sent money over WeChat to buy into an underground Mark Six lottery. Police detained Wang for 11 days, imposed a fine of 1,000 yuan ($139), and in July the party issued a serious warning.
The commission said the cases showed different kinds of misconduct, with some officials breaking rules on personal behavior, others gambling during work hours, and a few crossing both disciplinary and legal lines. The notice criticized those involved for showing “a lack of respect and reckless disregard for rules” and stressed that such actions “must be dealt with strictly.”
The statement urged officials to draw lessons from the cases and “consciously resist such conduct,” warning that gambling erodes ambition, disrupts work, and corrodes social values.
China is also tightening its stance on cross-border gambling, with the Supreme People’s Court ordering courts nationwide to impose strict penalties on organizers.
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