China’s efforts to deepen institutional reform are revolutionary: official
By Zhu Dongjun from People’s Daily
China’s latest efforts to deepen the reform of Party and State institutions are a fundamental revolution to modernize its system and capacity for governance, a senior Chinese official said in an signed article published on the People’s Daily on Tuesday.
Liu He, director of the General Office of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs, wrote the same day when China unveiled a plan to restructure the government with a major cabinet reshuffle aimed at making the administration better-structured, more efficient, and service-oriented.
The ministerial reform plan was submitted Tuesday to the ongoing first session of the 13th National People’s Congress for deliberations.
The reform plan says the State Council will have 26 ministries and commissions after it is reshuffled, and its ministerial-level entities will be reduced by eight and vice-ministerial-level entities will fall by seven.
Deepening reform of the Party and State institutions is historically and practically inevitable, Liu, also a member of the Political Bureau of the Communist Party of China (CPC) Central Committee, wrote in the article.
It is also an inevitable requirement for adhering to and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, for strengthening the Party’s long-term governance capability, for self-improvement and self-development of the socialist system, and for realizing the “Two Centenary Goals” of building China into a modern socialist country and realizing the rejuvenation of the Chinese nation, the article pointed out.
A core principle of this reform is to strengthen the Party’s overall leadership, the official pointed out.
To realize the target, efforts should be made to establish and improve the institutions and mechanisms by which the Party exercises leadership over major tasks, and elevate the status of Party organizations among organizations of the same level, Liu wrote.
Endeavor is also required to give better play to the role of the Party as functionary department, set up Party and government institutions with integrated plan, and advance reform of the Party’s disciplinary inspection and the country’s supervisory systems, he explained.
The reform is a comprehensive one that involves the Party, governments, legislatures, political advisory bodies, and judicial and military institutions at various levels, as well as social organizations and non-governmental organizations, according to the official.
The institutional reform this time, according to him, allows the country to optimize the setup of central and local institutions and the allocation of responsibilities, coordinate reforms of institutions in the Party, the government, the military and people’s organizations, and allocate local institutions in a reasonable way.
The reform is no less than an institutional revolution that is of profound significance, as it does not shy away from reshuffling of power and interests, the article said.
This round of reform is scientific, Liu wrote, elaborating that the reform enables similar affairs be handled by one department in principle, and makes the system more efficient by reducing the number of organs.
It enables Party and administrative organs to be better coordinated to reduce their overlapping duties, encourages the establishment of a ministry to better serve the veterans, ensures the local institutions can be more flexible in dealing with local social and economic affairs, and allows more differentiations in the setup of local institutions, he further explained.
The fruits of this round of reform will be safeguarded, said the article, pointing out that efforts would be ensured to improve the rules and regulations on Party and State institutions, strengthen rigid institutional restrictions, and tighten punishment on disciplinary offence and regulation violations against the institutions.
To deepen the reform of Party and State institutions is a systematic project that faces arduous and complex challenges, the article pointed out.
In order to deepen the reform, the country needs to strengthen the Party’s leadership, carry out the reform plan in accordance with the law, mobilize the enthusiasm of both central and local governments, and make sure each detail to be implemented, he concluded at last.
The fourth plenary meeting of the first session of the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 13, 2018. (Photo by Weng Qiyu from People’s Daily Online)
The signed article by Liu He, director of the General Office of the Central Leading Group for Financial and Economic Affairs, is published on the People’s Daily, March 13, 2018.
Deputies to the 13th National People’s Congress (NPC) listen to an institutional restructuring plan of the State Council at the fourth plenary meeting of the first session of the 13th NPC at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on March 13, 2018. (Photo by Li Ge from People’s Daily)
