Chairman Xi rules out Louis Vuitton

COMMUNIST Party fashionistas in China have found themselves exposed after photographs showing their penchant for designer clothes became online sensations.

Li Jianguo, an official from Hunan, Chairman Mao’s home province, was placed under investigation last month after eagle-eyed internet users noticed he was wearing a Louis Vuitton belt they felt was incompatible with the supposedly frugal lifestyle of a Communist official.

Li’s career now lies in tatters after he was accused of “serious disciplinary violation and law breaching”, according to Xinhua, China’s official news agency.

However, the lesson of his downfall went unheeded by another trendy mandarin from Harbin, in China’s chilly northeast. Shi Jiaxing, a top city official, was facing a similar fate this week after he was spotted wearing an overcoat made by French-Italian brand Moncler. Internet users called for his dismissal, claiming it would have cost more than 10 000 yuan (about R18 800).

Since he took control of the Communist Party in 2012, Xi Jinping has sent shivers through officialdom by waging a major anti-corruption drive.

State media said 12 inspection teams were being sent from Beijing to ensure that “austere working practice policies”, introduced on Xi’s orders, were being stuck to. The inspectors would focus on officials’ misuse of “overseas travel, receptions, vehicles, golf courses and high-end clubs”.