Zhu Lingjun: Leading Economic and Social Development with the Party's Self-Revolution
Governing the country requires first governing the Party, for only a flourishing Party can lead to a strong nation. At the Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee, General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "The Party’s self-revolution and economic and social development are closely linked, mutually reinforcing, and complementary. By means of the Party's self-revolution—promoting a new atmosphere of integrity, rectifying chronic ailments, creating a favorable political ecosystem, motivating cadres to take responsibility and act, and coalescing the hearts and strength of the people—we can continuously inject positive energy into economic and social development." This important discourse profoundly elucidates the intrinsic relationship between the Party’s self-revolution and economic and social development. It reveals the logic of why the Party must undergo self-revolution and provides powerful guidance for further strengthening the confidence and determination in self-revolution to ensure a strong start to the "15th Five-Year Plan" [1].
I
The Party’s self-revolution takes the leading of the great social revolution as its fundamental purpose. Marxism holds that social revolution is based on the contradictory movement between the productive forces and the relations of production; it is not merely a social movement to destroy the old political superstructure, but even more so a movement for new social construction. During the different periods of revolution, construction, and reform, our Party has consistently led the people in advancing the social revolution, resolving contradictions and problems by liberating and developing the productive forces, thereby driving social progress and the forward march of history. With the rapid development of social productive forces, misalignments within the relations of production and the superstructure constantly emerge. This requires our Party to employ the spirit of self-revolution to purify the political ecosystem, temper the cadre ranks, and improve institutional mechanisms. We must break through the contradictions, problems, and barriers of solidified interests that affect economic and social development, ensuring that the major decision-making deployments of the Party Central Committee take root and that further comprehensive deepening of reform achieves substantive progress, clearing the obstacles for economic and social development.
The more effective the governance and discipline of the Party, the more powerful the guarantee for economic and social development. General Secretary Xi Jinping noted: "Whether we can successfully navigate the world's second-largest economy and maintain sustained, healthy economic and social development ultimately depends on how well the Party plays its role as the leadership core in economic and social development." Since the 18th National Congress, comprehensively and strictly governing the Party has served as the great practice of the Party's self-revolution in the New Era. By clarifying direction, establishing rules, rectifying conduct, and strengthening immunity, it has created a positive, healthy political ecosystem and environment for entrepreneurship and professional endeavor. The Party began this breakthrough by formulating and implementing the Eight-Point Regulations of the Central Committee, persistently rectifying the Four Winds and eradicating chronic ailments. A refreshed Party and government conduct has led the social and folk customs toward a more positive and virtuous direction, coalescing powerful positive energy for the cause of the Party and the state. Anti-corruption is the most thorough form of self-revolution. The Party has combated corruption and punished evil with the force of a thunderbolt. The anti-corruption struggle has achieved an overwhelming victory and has been fully consolidated, creating favorable conditions for a fair and just market environment and a clean, upright business environment, and releasing more vitality for high-quality development. Practice has proven that without the revolutionary forging of comprehensively and strictly governing the Party in the New Era, it would have been impossible for the Party to lead our country in achieving such great successes in economic and social development.
During the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, the tasks of economic and social development will be arduous, and the situation severe and complex, placing new and higher requirements on the Party’s self-revolution. Internationally, the current world is characterized by intertwined chaos and intensifying turbulence; unilateralism and protectionism are on the rise, threats from hegemonism and power politics are increasing, and the maneuvering between major powers is becoming more complex and intense. Domestically, the problem of unbalanced and inadequate development remains prominent, and reform, development, and stability face many deep-seated contradictions and problems that cannot be avoided or bypassed. To seize opportunities and meet challenges amidst the profound and complex changes at home and abroad, our Party must remain alert with a strong sense of potential hardship and forge itself through the spirit of self-revolution. We must continuously improve the Party's level of leadership and long-term governing capacity to ensure that, in the historical process of profound changes in the global situation, we always stand at the forefront of the times; that in the historical process of responding to various risks and challenges at home and abroad, we remain the backbone of the people nationwide; and that in the historical process of upholding and developing socialism with Chinese characteristics, we remain the strong leadership core, better leading the great social revolution forward.
II
Achieving the goals and tasks of the "15th Five-Year Plan" and ensuring decisive progress in basically achieving socialist modernization [2] depends on forging a vast number of Party members and cadres who dare to break new ground, are skilled at it, and work with genuine pragmatism. Currently, in advancing the Party’s self-revolution—especially in forging strong organizations and building a high-quality cadre force—certain prominent problems still exist. If allowed to develop, these could become risks, hidden dangers, and bottlenecks affecting the overall situation of economic and social development. These require the high attention of Party organizations at all levels and the vast number of Party members and cadres to be resolved with great effort.
Deviations in the outlook on performance [3]. The outlook on performance is the fundamental view on for whom one creates performance, what kind of performance is created, and how it is created; it is directly reflected in the specific behaviors of cadres in performing their duties. The deviations in the outlook on performance existing among Party members, especially leading cadres, are mainly manifested in the following aspects: First, emphasizing "conspicuous performance" while neglecting "latent performance" [4]. Some cadres, to display so-called achievements, are fond of grand gestures and seek quick success and instant benefits. They disregard local resource endowments and conditions, having a one-sided understanding of developing new quality productive forces; they only pursue the "New Three" [5] while neglecting the transformation and upgrading of traditional industries. Some carry out "image projects" and "vanity projects" without sufficient demonstration or planning, causing "massive undertakings" to become "unfinished ruins" [6], wasting both labor and money. Some hold a negative mentality of "the new official ignores the old accounts" or "leaving the debt to the successor," being passive and indifferent toward resolving local government debt, even blindly borrowing to launch projects despite high debt levels. Second, emphasizing the local area while neglecting the overall situation. Some proceed from personal interests or the interests of their own local unit, "beating a small drum" and "calculating small accounts" [7], even sacrificing the overall interest to seek gains for themselves or small cliques. Some engage in departmentalism and local protectionism, blindly attracting investment and intensifying "involutionary" [8] competition. They have an inadequate understanding and execution of building a unified national market and smoothing the domestic circulation, guarding their "one acre and three-tenths of land" [9] and artificially setting up barriers. Third, emphasizing the immediate while neglecting the long-term. Some are keen on "creating a temporary momentum" rather than "benefiting a whole region," mistakenly believing that livelihood projects have long cycles and slow results, and that even if completed, they are difficult for superiors to notice. They are unwilling to do the solid work of "laying foundations" that benefits the long term. Some are eager to change to a new "track" or start a different set of plans as soon as a leadership transition occurs or they take office; a good blueprint is not followed to the end, resulting in a lack of policy stability and developmental continuity. Fourth, emphasizing deployment while neglecting implementation. Some treat making arrangements as implementation and words as deeds, lacking the tenacity to track results and the responsibility to grasp a task to the very end. Some engage in "selective execution" and "symbolic implementation" of policies, shirking difficult tasks, which leads to many policy measures "hanging in the air," unable to be transformed into actual results that benefit the masses.
Gaps in capacity and level. Chinese-path modernization is an undertaking without precedent. If one does not possess or does not fully possess the capacity to lead modernization, it will be difficult to shoulder the responsibilities and missions. Currently, the gaps in cadre capacity are mainly manifested in: First, a singular knowledge structure. Some cadres have a weak awareness of "recharging" their learning, content to "live off their old capital" [10], failing to take the initiative to study new situations and problems, and lacking necessary professional thinking, professional literacy, and professional methods. Second, a disconnect between theory and practice. Some do not go deep enough into the grassroots or understand reality sufficiently, and are not accustomed to seeking ideas, methods, and answers at the frontline. Some have not escaped the inertial thinking and path dependency of the past, making it difficult for their ideas and behaviors to adapt to the constantly changing new situations and tasks. Third, a deficiency in the ability to resolve contradictions. Some only know how to be "peace-time officials" [11]; once they encounter a contradiction, they become "witless," fighting a chaotic battle without a plan, leading to simplistic, one-dimensional, or reckless actions.
The work style is not robust enough. The Party's style is the Party's image; the more rigorous and solid the style of Party members and cadres, the more stable the Party's governing foundation. Currently, style problems among Party members and cadres are mainly manifested in: First, the Four Winds have been suppressed but the "roots and soil" remain. Some deep-seated style problems have not been fundamentally resolved, especially the strong inertia of "eating, drinking, and playing," where the potential for a rebound easily accumulates. Significant results have been achieved in rectifying formalism to reduce burdens at the grassroots level, but the problem of "mountains of documents and seas of meetings" [12] has not been eradicated. The irregular seconding of cadres and the unapproved carrying out of evaluations, commendations, and demonstration activities are still growing quietly. Second, the mental outlook needs lifting. Some lack initiative, holding the attitude of "being a monk for a day and tolling the bell for a day" [13]. Their work mentality is "Buddhist-like" [14] or they are resigned to "lying flat," even "letting it rot" [15] when encountering difficult problems. Some evade, hide, or dodge when faced with urgent, difficult, or dangerous tasks or major risk tests, lacking a courageous character and the spirit of struggle. Third, being "bound hand and foot" in entrepreneurship. Some follow the vulgar philosophy that "if you don't wash the dishes, you won't break them," fearing that the more they do, the more mistakes they will make, and worrying about being held accountable. Some seek only to protect themselves, unwilling to touch deep-seated or long-accumulated contradictions for fear of "bringing fire upon themselves" or doing hard work with no thanks. Some are happy to be a "Yes-man" [16], afraid of offending people and being "given small shoes to wear" [17] or being falsely accused and framed, thus getting into trouble.
Failure to pass the test of integrity and self-discipline. According to data released by the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the National Commission of Supervision, in the first three quarters of 2025, disciplinary inspection and supervision organs nationwide filed 789,000 cases, representing year-on-year increases of approximately 68% and 23% compared to 2023 and 2024, respectively. This fully demonstrates that the current anti-corruption struggle remains severe and complex. The existing "stock" of corruption has not been cleared, and "incremental" corruption continues to occur. The task of eradicating the soil and conditions for corruption remains arduous. Corruption must always be met with the "sounding of the charge." In the New Era, although our Party has maintained high-pressure momentum against corruption, some Party members and cadres still lack awe and disregard Party discipline and national law, leading to the collapse of their integrity defense; some even willingly allow themselves to be "hunted" [18]. Corruption in key areas, crucial links, and among key targets occurs frequently, involving large sums of money and wide-ranging implications, with high social attention; there are loopholes in the allocation and exercise of power. Unhealthy tendencies and corrupt behaviors are intertwined, with "corruption stemming from style" [19] and "using style to cover corruption" being prominent phenomena. Corruption is becoming increasingly concealed, with "new types of corruption" and "hidden corruption" [20] methods constantly being updated, further increasing the difficulty of identification and rectification.
Some of the aforementioned problems are the result of long-term accumulation, while others are new problems arising during development, with complex and diverse causes. From the perspective of the environment, the changes unseen in a century are accelerating, and the principal contradiction in Chinese society has changed. High-quality economic and social development places higher requirements on Party organizations and cadres at all levels; the comprehensive quality of some is struggling to keep pace with the times. From a subjective perspective, some cadres have a weak sense of Party spirit and insufficient self-cultivation, lacking genuine affection for the people. The ideological root of "creating benefits for the people" is not firmly planted, making them susceptible to erroneous ideas. From an objective perspective, there are still weak links in the regulation of leading cadres' power. In the various stages of authorizing and controlling power, problems like "enclosing cats in a cattle pen" or "caging tigers with paper" [21] still exist. Among the various systems for cadre education and management, practical measures to stimulate the internal motivation and overall vitality of the cadre force are not yet perfect. In some fields, there is still a disconnect between grassroots Party building and professional work ("two skins") [22]. There are still many "blockage points" in Party building for emerging fields, especially among groups in "new forms of employment" [23]. The responsibility system for different levels and categories still needs further improvement.
III
The Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee included "taking comprehensively and strictly governing the Party as the fundamental guarantee" in the guiding ideology for economic and social development during the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, and made a series of deployments on persistently advancing this governance. We must profoundly grasp the practical requirement of "leading the social revolution through the Party's self-revolution," promote high-quality development through high-quality Party building, and lay a more solid foundation for basically achieving socialist modernization.
Uphold and strengthen the centralized and unified leadership of the Party Central Committee. This is the highest political principle of our Party and the fundamental guarantee for the steady and long-term progress of the Party and state. We must guide the whole Party to profoundly understand the decisive significance of the Two Establishments, strengthen the Four Consciousnesses, firm the Four Confidences, and achieve the Two Upholds. We must align thoughts and actions with the Party Central Committee's judgment of the situation and its decision-making deployments for the "15th Five-Year Plan" period, and strive together to basically achieve socialist modernization. We must improve the mechanisms for implementing the major decisions of the Party Central Committee, ensuring that major decisions, matters, and situations in economic and social development are promptly reported to the Central Committee. We must continuously improve the political judgment, political understanding, and political execution of Party members and cadres to ensure that instructions are communicated downward and executed effectively. We must develop intra-Party democracy, improve and implement democratic centralism, and adhere to scientific, democratic, and law-based decision-making, constantly improving the Party's capacity and level in leading economic and social development.
We must persist in using the Party's innovative theories to unify our thoughts, will, and actions. Only with theoretical clarity can there be firm and powerful action. We must educate and guide Party members and cadres to continuously study and comprehend Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, profoundly grasping the worldview and methodology of this thought, as well as the stances, viewpoints, and methods that permeate it. We must draw upon the rich political wisdom and nourishment for Party spirit [24] contained within it, consciously becoming steadfast believers and faithful practitioners of the Party's innovative theories. We must vigorously promote a style of study that integrates theory with practice, becoming adept at finding direction, ideas, and methods from the Party's innovative theories, and effectively transforming the results of learning into a powerful force for strengthening ideals, tempering Party spirit, guiding practice, and advancing work.
We must fully leverage the advantages of the Party's organizational work. The Party's strength comes from its organization; organization enables the Party's strength to multiply. We must adhere to the clear orientation of "focusing heavily on the grassroots" [25], striving to enhance the political and organizational functions of Party organizations, and effectively improving the capacity and level of primary-level Party organizations to lead grassroots governance, serve the masses, and implement tasks of reform and development. We must place particular emphasis on Party building in new economic organizations, new social organizations, and new employment groups [26], ensuring that high-quality Party building always adapts to the continuous and healthy development of industries and employment sectors. We must guide Party members and cadres to establish and practice a correct outlook on political achievements [27], insisting on producing achievements for the people and through practical hard work. We should improve differentiated assessment and evaluation systems, perfect mechanisms for effectively preventing and correcting deviations in the outlook on political achievements, refine and implement the tenure system for leading cadres, and improve the handover system for principal heads of leadership teams upon their movement, strictly preventing short-term behavior and speculative thinking induced by frequent job adjustments.
We must perseveringly implement the spirit of the central Eight-Point Regulations and promote the normalization and long-term effectiveness of the Party's work style construction. Practice has shown that advancing comprehensively and strictly governing the Party by starting with work style is an important experience of the Party's self-revolution in the New Era. We must consolidate and expand the achievements of work style construction since the 18th Party Congress [28], especially the educational outcomes of deeply implementing the spirit of the Eight-Point Regulations. We must unswervingly rectify the persistent ailments of the "Four Winds," keep a close watch on new trends of invisible and mutated versions of these issues, and work together to create an atmosphere of austerity and establish a righteous spirit. We must carry out work style education on a regular basis, improve mechanisms for the routine discovery and resolution of work style problems, and guide Party members and cadres to examine their personal issues with the consciousness of facing problems head-on and the "courage to turn the blade inward" [29]. They should be adept at using the "Marxist flashlight to shine on themselves first" [30], beginning reforms with small matters and minor details, starting from daily bits and pieces, and integrating the Party's fine work style into daily routines and habits.
We must resolutely fight the battle against corruption as a battle of fortification, a protracted war, and an all-out war, continuously enhancing the comprehensive effectiveness of corruption governance. Corruption is the greatest threat facing our Party. We must maintain a high-pressure stance against corruption at all times, strictly investigating and handling corruption where political and economic problems are intertwined. We must deepen the rectification of corruption in sectors characterized by concentrated power, capital intensity, and resource richness. We must resolutely punish new and hidden forms of corruption, as well as the "fly and ant corruption" [31] occurring around the masses. We must deepen the practice of investigating both bribes and those who offer them, and resolutely eliminate systemic corruption risks and hidden dangers. We must strengthen the regulation and supervision of the allocation and exercise of power, identify blind spots and gaps, and improve institutional mechanisms that unify authorization, exercise, and restriction of power in a clear, transparent, and traceable manner. We must combine intra-Party supervision with supervision by the people, leaving no place for privileged phenomena or corrupt acts to hide. We must focus on strengthening the culture of integrity in the New Era, guiding Party members and cadres to emphasize the construction of family, family education, and family traditions, cultivating a sense of fairness, integrity, and rule-following throughout society, and building a solid line of defense for integrity in which everyone participates and contributes.