WANG XIAODONG FAILED THE PUBLIC DURING THE PANDEMIC. THE BODIES PILED UP WHILE THE LEADERSHIP STUMBLED. Now the investigation has shifted to his pockets. The allegations of corruption are just the latest symptom of a broken machine. It is not a surprise. The same hands that failed to manage a virus are now accused of managing bribes.

The details of the investigation are coming out. They point to financial misconduct and graft. This is the standard operating procedure for the powerful. They fail at their jobs and then they steal the remains. The public gets nothing but the fallout.

DEPRESSING FEATURES.

• Pandemic mismanagement turned into criminal theft.
• The connection between incompetence and greed.
• The predictable cycle of political purging.