Ming Haiying: Effectively Internalizing the Central Eight-Point Regulations into Standards of Conduct that are Exercised Daily Without Conscious Effort [1]
Organizing and carrying out in-depth study and education on implementing the spirit of the Central Eight-Point Regulations across the entire Party is a major measure to consolidate and expand the achievements of the Party’s conduct construction [1] in the New Era and to advance the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party in depth. The social science circles in Hubei Province responded swiftly, immediately establishing a dedicated study and education task force and building a three-level coordination mechanism of "University Party Committee – Secondary Party Organizations – Primary-level Party Branches." By adhering to the principle of "leading from the top" [2], providing exemplary guidance, and driving progress through hierarchical levels, they have achieved multi-dimensional, categorized coverage of study and discussion. By insisting on the integration of theory and practice alongside process-based supervision, they have ensured that study and education lead to tangible actions and results.
The "Top Leaders" Take Charge to Press Home Responsibilities through the Ranks
To solidly advance the depth and substance of study and education, Wuhan University held two research symposiums and conducted various forms of onsite investigations and online questionnaire surveys. "We must fully utilize the results of our investigations to dynamically update the list of identified problems, establish a ledger for centralized rectification, and simultaneously advance the work of learning, identification, and rectification, pushing the high-quality development of the university's undertakings through new achievements in conduct construction," stated Huang Taiyan, Secretary of the Wuhan University Party Committee. He noted that they must systematically summarize opinions and suggestions, and listen to multi-party feedback through disciplinary inspection and supervision, inspection tours [3], "University Leader Reception Days," and the "Luojia Express" channel, categorizing them item by item into the rectification list.
Xie Hongxing, Secretary of the Hubei University Party Committee, stated that to continuously strengthen the commitment to responsibility and ensure the orderly and effective implementation of the spirit of the Eight-Point Regulations, the study and education are conducted under the leadership of the University Party Committee. The University's Leading Group for Party Building handles overall coordination, while the University Party Committee’s Organization Department leads the formulation of implementation plans and the formation of the task force. Each secondary party organization assumes total responsibility for the study and education within its department or unit, organizing and implementing it in close integration with central tasks.
"We must strengthen organizational leadership; the Party Leadership Group [4] of the Academy must resolutely shoulder the primary responsibility for study and education, and the Secretary of the Party Leadership Group must earnestly fulfill the duties of the person with primary responsibility, continuously tightening the chain of responsibility," argued Xu Yanguo, Secretary of the Party Leadership Group of the Hubei Provincial Academy of Social Sciences. He believes that study and education must be meticulously organized to ensure they take root and yield results. Focusing on key areas and critical links, they should conduct in-depth self-examination and self-correction, comprehensively sorting out weak links and prominent problems in all aspects, guiding Party members and cadres to resolutely stick to the "iron rules" and "hard benchmarks."
"The University Party Committee must take the lead in performing well in study and education, effectively shoulder its primary responsibility, and ensure the implementation of all tasks across the school. The Leading Group for Party Building and the task force must organize meticulously, refine the work list, clarify arrangements, and ensure implementation with high standards and quality," said Xu Weilin, Deputy Secretary of the Party Committee and President of Wuhan Textile University. He believes that heads of Party organizations at all levels must shoulder their duty as the person with primary responsibility, while other members of the leadership teams fulfill their "dual responsibilities for one post" [5], managing their own study while playing a leading exemplary role.
Huazhong Agricultural University required its secondary party organizations to shoulder their primary responsibility. While conducting their own study and education, they must provide full-coverage and full-process guidance to their subordinate Party branches, guiding all members to enhance their political, ideological, and behavioral consciousness. Continuous deep study and reflection are required, combining individual self-study with collective study. Through theoretical study center groups [6], exchange discussions, and faculty-student lectures, they aim to accurately grasp the original texts and principles and deeply understand the core essence, recognizing that the spirit of the Eight-Point Regulations consists of "iron rules" and "hard benchmarks" intended for the long term. They must remain problem-oriented, using the spirit of self-revolution to comprehensively identify problems and advance centralized rectification, achieving immediate rectification upon discovery and promoting governance through reform.
Xia Lixin, Secretary of the Huazhong Normal University Party Committee, stated that they must highlight key points and seize critical factors. They must simultaneously advance "learning, identification, and reform," using "learning" to forge the soul and build an ideological defense line; using "identification" to solve problems with targeted precision; and using "reform" to promote practical work and improve the effectiveness of rectification. "Top leaders" must take the lead to press home responsibility through the ranks; the work must reach the bottom level ("one pole to the bottom") [7]; progress should be made as a "single chessboard" [8] with a focus on performance; and everyone must remain highly vigilant ("one taut string"), adhering to the principle of seeking truth from facts.
Solidly Carrying Out Study and Education in Multiple Forms
As a key lever and carrier of study and education, special reading classes use individual self-study and collective study by the University Party Committee’s Theoretical Study Center Group to promote the spirit of the Eight-Point Regulations through systematic learning, discussion, and practical transformation.
Leaders of Hubei University of Technology, through Party Committee meetings, weekly leadership meetings, and Center Group sessions, deeply studied the spirit of General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important speeches during his inspections in Guizhou and Yunnan. The University Party Committee held a six-day reading class, building a "six-in-one" full-chain learning model consisting of "collective discussion + individual autonomy + practical connection + follow-up learning + video expansion + warning cases," leading all secondary party organizations in systematic study.
Xia Lixin stated that the formulation and implementation of the Eight-Point Regulations served as the breakthrough point for the Party Central Committee to grip conduct construction. From a historical logic, strengthening conduct construction is the breakthrough and important hallmark of the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party in the New Era. From a theoretical logic, the Eight-Point Regulations are an important guarantee for promoting the modernization of national governance, demonstrating the Party’s political wisdom in using institutional advantages to deal with risks and challenges. From a practical logic, strengthening conduct construction is a vital part of comprehensive and strict governance and a major lever for promoting the Party’s self-revolution in the New Era.
Members of the Party Committee Center Group at the Zhongnan University of Economics and Law studied the spirit of the Central Eight-Point Regulations and their implementation rules "word for word" [9]. They visited the Hubei Provincial Archives to see the "Family Traditions of Chinese Communists" exhibition, watched the educational film Iron Rules and Hard Benchmarks, and listened to specialized reports. Hou Zhenfa, Secretary of the University Party Committee, believes that implementing the Eight-Point Regulations is a process of "constant learning and constant new understanding." One must "know awe" through study, find gaps through identification, and see results through reform, leading by example in transforming conduct and fostering a clean political atmosphere.
The reading class at South-Central university for Nationalities included exchange discussions, specialized guidance, onsite teaching, and case-based warning education. Xu Yeqing, Secretary of the University Party Committee, stated that leading cadres must be strict with themselves and set an example, taking the lead in implementing the spirit of the Eight-Point Regulations, strictly observing discipline, going to the front lines of teachers and students, and acting with a sense of responsibility. They must further improve the school's institutional system, achieving both "targeted treatment" and "addressing both symptoms and root causes" to promote the reform of the internal management system.
Using Party Building to Lead the Upgrading of Central Tasks
As an important entry point for the comprehensive and strict governance of the Party, the Eight-Point Regulations are a disciplinary "red line" and code of conduct that Party members must uphold. the Wuhan University of Technology Party Committee clarified key tasks for different groups, including cadre members, faculty members, student members, and retired members. To ensure retired members did not "fall behind," the school used door-to-door delivery of materials and peer-assisted learning. Meanwhile, relying on an intelligent platform, they implemented "online pre-inspection," using data screening to discover problems early. By integrating information from inspections, disciplinary supervision, and auditing, they employed a "organizational screening + comprehensive self-examination" dual-track mode to dig deep into prominent problems in conduct construction among leadership teams.
He Weijun, Secretary of the China Three Gorges University Party Committee, introduced the historical background of the Eight-Point Regulations during a specialized Party lecture and analyzed cases of violations in universities, using "people and things around us" [10] as warning education. He believes that cadres must learn lessons from such cases, maintain self-reflection and self-discipline, and be vigilant against a "momentary lapse of judgment" leading to "the ruin of a lifetime."
"We must make full use of Party Committee meetings, Center Group studies, the 'Three Meetings and One Lesson' [11], Theme Party Days, and specialized Party lectures to deepen exchanges throughout the process. We must use warning records, confession letters, and documentaries to conduct warning education," said Qin Daoming, Secretary of the Jianghan University Party Committee. He stated that leaders at all levels must exert the "head-goose effect" [12], coordinating study and education with the university’s key annual tasks to transform results into high-quality development.
"The whole university must advance study and education, insisting on using Party building to lead the upgrading of central tasks," stated Zhang Guangjun, Academician of the Chinese Academy of Engineering and Secretary of the Huazhong University of Science and Technology Party Committee. He stated that they must continue to polish the "Party Flag as Navigator" brand, promoting the deep integration of Party building with teaching and business. Using the "Year of Talent Team Building" and "Year of Cadre Capacity Improvement" as levers, they aim to enhance the quality of talent recruitment and cultivation, ensuring that they build a high-quality, professional cadre team and optimize the environment for talent development.
Source: Chinese Social Sciences Net - Guangming Daily, June 6, 2025 Online Editor: Tongxin