Xu Caihou Xu Caihou ( b. 1943 ) is one of three vice chairman of the Central Military Commission of the Communist Party of China and the People 's Republic of China . He succeeded Hu Jintao to this post on September 19 , 2004 upon the latter 's promotion to the chairmanship . His appointment came as a surprise to some analysts as it was thought that Jiang Zemin would make the promotion of his protégé Zeng Qinghong the condition of his retirement . As a result , Xu 's appointment appeared to be a political victory for Hu . Xu is also a member of the Secretariat of the Communist Party of China . This Chinese biographical article is a stub . You can help Wikipedia by expanding it . Categories : Chinese people stubs | Leaders of the Communist Party of China In other languages : Français 