Shan Aihong: Leading Officials Should Establish and Practice a Correct Outlook on Political Performance
Since the 18th CPC National Congress, General Secretary Xi Jinping has put forward a series of important expositions centering on major theoretical and practical issues such as "for whom performance is created, what kind of performance is created, and what to rely on to create performance." These reflections embody a profound grasp of the laws governing the development of the cadre force in the New Era. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee emphasized the need to "establish and practice a correct conception of political achievement, and improve work mechanisms for effectively preventing and rectifying deviations in the conception of political achievement." On the new journey, leading cadres must deeply study and implement General Secretary Xi Jinping’s important expositions, establish and practice a correct conception of political achievement, and strive to create actual results that can withstand the test of practice, the people, and history.
I. Fully recognize the importance of establishing and practicing a correct conception of political achievement
Establishing and practicing a correct conception of political achievement is not merely a matter concerning the development of a single locality or region; it concerns the "top priorities of the nation" [1] and the grand strategy of the Party. Leading cadres must always maintain a high degree of self-awareness and unswerving commitment to this foundation of governance and essential requirement of their duties.
Establishing and practicing a correct conception of political achievement is a requirement for manifesting the Party’s nature and purpose and for promoting the healthy development of the cause of the Party and the state. A conception of political achievement is the fundamental standpoint and general outlook on administrative results; it is the concrete manifestation of one's worldview, outlook on life, and values within the act of governance. A correct conception of political achievement is deeply rooted in the Party’s original aspiration and founding mission, its nature, and its purpose, and is vividly manifested in all the Party’s struggles and practices. Article 36 of the Constitution of the Communist Party of China explicitly stipulates that leading cadres of the Party at all levels must "establish a correct conception of political achievement and produce actual results that can withstand the test of practice, the people, and history." The Communist Party of China is the core of leadership for the cause of socialism with Chinese characteristics and is a party that serves the people. Whether the conception of political achievement held by Party members and cadres is correct or not directly relates to the development of the cause of the Party and the people. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "When considering problems and making decisions, leading cadres must have the top priorities of the nation in mind. They should focus more on the 'big abacus' and 'big accounts' and less on 'small abacuses' and 'small accounts' [2]." Practice has proven that in establishing and practicing a correct conception of political achievement, the decisive factor is Party spirit. Only by having a strong Party spirit and discarding selfish calculations can one guarantee that the conception of political achievement does not deviate, ensuring that thoughts and energy are truly focused on entrepreneurship for the Party and the people.
Establishing and practicing a correct conception of political achievement is a requirement for better satisfying the people’s aspirations for a better life. The people are the masters of the country, and cadres are public servants of the people. On the new journey in the New Era, leading cadres can only win the support of the masses if they take satisfying the people’s aspirations for a better life as the goal and focus of their work. When planning and promoting work, they must conform to the thoughts, sentiments, concerns, and expectations of the masses; when formulating policies and measures, they must take satisfying the people's ever-growing needs for a better life as the starting point and ultimate goal; and when promoting the implementation of work, they must strive to let the masses see changes and receive tangible benefits. With the distinct orientation of "responding to what the people call for through reform," we promote the comprehensive deepening of reform; with the sincere sentiment of "not letting a single person fall behind," we have historically resolved the problem of absolute poverty; with the firm determination of "being willing to sacrifice everything to protect the lives and safety of the people," we fought against the pandemic of the century... These ideas and actions make us deeply feel that wherever there is a need of the people, good and practical deeds can be done, and achievements can be created.
Establishing and practicing a correct conception of political achievement is a requirement for promoting high-quality development. General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out: "High-quality development is the primary task in comprehensively building a modern socialist country, and adhering to high-quality development must become an important component of leading cadres' conception of political achievement." The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee emphasized "taking economic system reform as the spearhead" and "improving the systems and mechanisms for promoting high-quality economic development." The conception of political achievement is closely linked to the conception of development. If a leading cadre’s conception of political achievement is not properly aligned, their decision-making, focus on development, and promotion of reform will become displaced and biased. Entering the New Era, the principal contradiction in Chinese society has changed, and the contradictions and problems in development are concentrated in the quality of development. For the philosophy of high-quality development to take root and turn into practice, the key lies in leading cadres at all levels establishing and practicing a conception of political achievement that conforms to the new development philosophy, specifically addressing the major questions of what kind of development to achieve and how to achieve it. Only by unswervingly implementing the new development philosophy, constructing a new development pattern, and unswervingly viewing and measuring political achievement with such a philosophy and scale can we deliver an excellent performance in high-quality development.
II. Comprehensively grasp the rich connotations of establishing and practicing a correct conception of political achievement
General Secretary Xi Jinping pointed out that to establish and practice a correct conception of political achievement, one must "properly solve the problems of for whom performance is created, what kind of performance is created, and what to rely on to create performance." This important exposition profoundly reveals the rich connotations of the conception of political achievement, providing ideological guidance and a blueprint for action for Party member leading cadres in their conduct and careers.
Properly solve the problem of "for whom performance is created." A correct conception of political achievement is a people-centered one. In June 2005, Xi Jinping, then Secretary of the Zhejiang Provincial Party Committee, pointed out the need to "adhere to the political virtue of putting the interests of the people above all else, and truly produce political achievements beneficial to the cause of the Party and the people." The conception of political virtue [3] is the attitude and understanding with which leading cadres handle their relationship with the masses; it determines the values, way of thinking, and way of behaving regarding for whom political achievements are produced. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, through sustained education in Party spirit and political theory, the vast number of Party member leading cadres have gradually established the "people-centered" philosophy and have established and practiced a conception of political achievement dedicated to benefit the people. However, individual leading cadres, in order to produce quick or conspicuous results, have substituted "putting on a show" for "taking action"; some do not conduct in-depth investigation and research, and are impetuous or act recklessly. The crux of these problems is a deviation in "for whom performance is created." Leading cadres must clearly recognize that the power in their hands and the positions they hold are bestowed by the Party and the people to be used for the Party and the people, and can only be used to seek interests for the people. "Being an 'official' of the Communist Party has only one purpose: to benefit the people." "The Communist Party exists to do things for the people, to make the people's lives better day by day, year by year." These important expositions by the General Secretary vividly answer the core question of "for whom performance is created."
Properly solve the problem of "what kind of performance is created." A correct conception of political achievement is one that promotes high-quality development. What kind of performance leading cadres create will inevitably face choices when making plans and decisions: whether to produce visible, immediate results, or to produce results that lay a foundation for the long term. Behind this lies the determination of how to handle the relationship between the present and the long term, and how to view the relationship between development quality and efficiency. Leading cadres at all levels must firmly establish a correct conception of political achievement, adhere to high-quality development, and perform both practical deeds that the common people can see, touch, and benefit from, as well as good deeds that pave the way, lay foundations, and benefit the long term for future generations. It is necessary to properly handle the relationships between stability and progress, between establishing the new and breaking the old, between the intangible and the tangible, between the symptoms and the root causes, and between the near-term and the long-term. We must persist in overall planning and taking all factors into consideration, seeking progress while maintaining stability. We must not engage in blind competition divorced from reality, nor engage in "image projects" or "prestige projects" that waste labor and money [4], truly being responsible to history and the people.
Properly solve the problem of "what to rely on to create performance." A correct conception of political achievement is one that emphasizes hard work and responsibility. General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized: "Faced with the arduous and heavy tasks of reform, development, and stability, leading bodies and leading cadres at all levels must, in accordance with the requirements of the Central Committee, keep in mind that 'empty talk harms the country, while hard work prospers the nation' [5], be enterprising and proactive, and create actual results that can withstand the test of practice, the people, and history." In reality, individual leading cadres, in order to produce "visible conspicuous results," blindly expand scales and engage in construction, prioritizing "face" over "substance" [6] and empty effort over hard work. Superficially, they create a "temporary achievement," but it results in a "long-term burden." Seeking truth from facts is the fundamental requirement of the Party's political, ideological, organizational, and mass lines. One part deployment requires nine parts implementation. In their careers, leading cadres must carry forward the style of seeking truth from facts and doing practical work, taking responsibility with the "spirit of driving a nail" [7] to ensure all tasks are implemented effectively. As General Secretary Xi Jinping emphasized, "achievements are all produced through work; only real work can produce real achievements and true results," and we must "establish a correct conception of political achievement, persist in basing actions on reality and scientific decision-making, persist in looking to the long term and laying a solid foundation, persist in working in Earnest and seeking practical results, and prevent formalism and bureaucratism."
III. Improve work mechanisms for effectively preventing and rectifying deviations in the conception of political achievement
The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee emphasized the need to "improve work mechanisms for effectively preventing and rectifying deviations in the conception of political achievement." Since the 18th CPC National Congress, many good mechanisms have been formed to promote the establishment and practice of a correct conception of political achievement by leading cadres. On the new journey, these should be further strengthened and perfected.
Improve the performance appraisal mechanism for leading cadres. The report to the 20th CPC National Congress pointed out that we should improve the appraisal and evaluation system for cadres to guide them in establishing and practicing a correct conception of political achievement. Cadre appraisal is the foundational work of cadre management and an important lever for promoting leading bodies and cadres at all levels to firmly establish a correct conception of political achievement. To improve the cadre appraisal and evaluation system, we must properly solve the problems of "how to evaluate performance" and "who evaluates performance." We must focus on promoting Chinese-path modernization, implementing the new development philosophy, and focusing on constructing a comprehensive performance appraisal system that promotes high-quality development. We should optimize the design of appraisal indicators, improve appraisal methods, and strengthen the application of appraisal results to guide cadres in further establishing a conception of political achievement that benefits the people. First, the appraisal system must be improved, indicators optimized, standards refined, and classified appraisal strengthened. In line with the requirements of the national comprehensive performance evaluation for high-quality development, common indicators should be set, while making the improvement of people's livelihoods, social progress, and ecological benefits important content, and establishing targeted characteristic indicators. Second, appraisal methods must be optimized, persisting in balancing qualitative and quantitative measures, connecting routine and annual assessments, and combining the appraisal of tasks with the appraisal of people. We should comprehensively use appraisal methods that combine self-evaluation with peer evaluation, superior with subordinate, and internal with external perspectives. We should adopt methods such as "four-not-two-direct" [8] investigations to go deep into major projects and key works to inspect cadres' performance. Third, the participation of the masses and society in performance appraisal should be increased to promote multi-angled, all-round, and three-dimensional appraisal. Attention should be paid to the role of surveys on mass satisfaction and satisfaction with basic public services, ensuring that the feelings and democratic evaluations of the masses are fully reflected in performance appraisals. A combination of "individual interviews + leadership review" and "democratic discussion + organizational examination" should be adopted to understand cadres' actual performance from all angles, enhancing the scientific nature and accuracy of the appraisal.
Improve the mechanism for the selection and appointment of leading cadres. The selection and appointment of personnel serves as a wind vane; the orientation of personnel selection determines the orientation of political achievement and development, as well as the conception of political achievement. Since the 18th CPC National Congress, the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core has clearly put forward the standards for good cadres in the new period and improved the systems and mechanisms for personnel selection and appointment, promoting significant results and major changes in this work. In March 2019, the CPC Central Committee issued the revised Regulations on the Selection and Appointment of Leading Party and Government Cadres (hereinafter referred to as the Cadre Appointment Regulations). Article 27 therein points out the need to "focus on inspecting actual work performance, centering on the implementation of the CPC Central Committee's major decisions and deployments, the coordinated promotion of the 'Five-Sphere Integrated Plan' and the 'Four Comprehensives' strategic layout, and gaining an in-depth understanding of the actual results achieved in performing duties, implementing the new development philosophy, and promoting high-quality development." The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee emphasized the need to clearly establish a correct orientation for personnel selection and appointment, and to vigorously select cadres who are politically sound, dare to take responsibility, are keen on reform, have outstanding achievements, and are clean and honest. On the new journey, we must implement the standards for good cadres in the New Era proposed by General Secretary Xi Jinping and establish an orientation of personnel selection that emphasizes hard work, actual results, and responsibility. We must earnestly implement the Cadre Appointment Regulations to ensure the standards for good cadres are put into practice. We must construct scientifically sound and complete mechanisms for cadre appraisal and selection, persisting in combining appraisal with appointment. We must strictly implement the tenure system for Party and government leading cadres to strictly prevent the frequent adjustments that induce short-termism and speculative thinking among cadres, further promoting the establishment and practice of a correct conception of political achievement.
Strengthen the rigid constraint mechanism for daily supervision and accountability. Good cadres are selected, but even more so, they are managed. Strict management and supervision are important means to prevent the alienation, displacement, and distortion of cadres' conception of political achievement. In the General Provisions of the newly revised Regulations of the Communist Party of China on Disciplinary Actions, a new provision has been added...
The requirement of "practically implementing a correct outlook on power, achievements, and career" has been established. Article 57 [9] explicitly defines disciplinary provisions for Party leading cadres whose outlook on performance is misplaced, who violate the New Development Philosophy [10], or who deviate from the requirements of high-quality development. Promoting the establishment of a performance outlook centered on creating benefits for the people among leading cadres requires not only strengthening positive guidance but also reinforcing negative constraints. This means persisting in strengthening daily management and supervision, beginning with oversight of small matters, and strictly managing the majority. It is necessary to promptly and effectively prevent and correct embryonic or positional problems regarding the outlook on performance, minimizing and mitigating harm to the interests of the Party, the state, and the people. We must persist in combining regular supervision with special rectifications, consolidating the results of special campaigns against "half-finished projects" [11], "image projects" [12], and statistical fraud. Issues regarding the outlook on performance must be incorporated into disciplinary inspections, supervision, and audits to promptly discover and rectify prominent deviations. For those confirmed to have caused serious consequences, strict accountability must be pursued to correct the misplaced outlook of "lying flat" [13] and slackening, as well as the blind impulsiveness driven by the desire to reap personal political capital.
We must improve the mechanisms for encouraging and protecting cadres’ responsibility and initiative. The Third Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee made deployments for further comprehensively deepening reform and advancing Chinese-path modernization, requiring the implementation of the "Three Distinctions" [14] to encourage cadres to be pioneering, enterprising, and proactive in their work. Aiming at problems in the construction of the cadre contingent—focusing on prominent issues such as "not wanting to act" due to lack of motivation, "not knowing how to act" due to lack of ability, and "not daring to act" due to lack of responsibility—we must seize upon the key bottlenecks affecting cadre enthusiasm. We must strive to link all stages of cadre selection, cultivation, management, and utilization. Furthermore, we must explore solutions to practical problems such as the lack of smooth error-tolerance and exemption mechanisms, the reluctance to tolerate errors due to an inertial reliance on accountability, and the inability to tolerate errors due to a lack of operational procedures. We must scientifically define the conditions and scenarios for error tolerance, refine specific operational methods and processes, and earnestly solve the questions of "who tolerates," "what is tolerated," and "how to tolerate." We must establish and improve mechanisms for investigating and punishing malicious accusations and for clarifying and vindicating cadres, seriously handling acts of framing and retaliation. We should promptly clear the names of cadres who have been falsely accused, providing a "supportive hand" for those who are daring in their responsibility, down-to-earth in their work, and recognized by the masses. We must improve and implement various measures for political encouragement, work support, and benefit guarantees, fulfilling the "Notice on Earnestly Doing a Good Job in Caring for the Mental Health of Cadres" issued by the Organization Department of the CPC Central Committee. We must establish and improve specific measures to care for grassroots cadres, especially those in areas with harsh conditions, so that cadres can feel at ease in their positions and career, focusing wholeheartedly on entrepreneurship and serving the people.
We must establish and improve a long-term mechanism for education on the outlook on performance. We should give full play to the leading, foundational, and strategic role of cadre education and training, making performance outlook education an important part of the study and training for Party members and cadres. Specialized modules on performance outlook education should be established as a regular feature in various core classes at Party Schools (Schools of Administration) at all levels, pushing leading cadres to deeply understand its rich connotations and practical requirements. In thematic education [15], establishing and practicing a correct outlook on performance and promoting high-quality development should be included as key content in theoretical study. This will enhance the ideological, political, and behavioral consciousness of establishing a correct performance outlook and increase the internal drive to resist formalism and bureaucratism. Performance outlook education should be deeply integrated with organizational life, incorporating it into "Theme Party Day" activities, specialized democratic life meetings, and specialized organizational life meetings. For cadres whose outlook on performance has deviated, timely education and reminders should be provided. Through regular heart-to-heart talks, deviations in the performance outlook should be effectively corrected, urging leading cadres to reflect the creation of benefits for the people in every aspect and process of their duties. We must emphasize using both positive and negative typical examples to enhance the effectiveness of education, giving full play to the exemplary role of positive models while persisting in using cases as warnings, using cases as lessons, and promoting rectification through cases. We must conduct in-depth analysis of negative cases such as "performance projects" [16] that violate objective laws, learning from these instances to correct deviations and practically build a dam against "performance impulse syndrome."