How the CPC selects and appoints cadres

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The Communist Party of China (CPC) has a set of rules for cadre selections and appointments at all levels. Integrity and ability are seen as the most important requirements. Today, the Party has been working on enhancing these regulations and has called for increased inspections on cadres’ loyalty and political backgrounds.

The Organization Department is in charge of cadre selection and wields a lot of power in the selection process.   

CGTN got a glimpse into this process, through a survey trip for county-level cadre selection in southwestern Sichuan province. Huang Lijian, an official from the Ganzi Tibet Autonomous Prefecture, was about to investigate one of the candidates in a local township.

Field surveys for cadre selection is a must for CPC organization department in vast, rugged mountainous Ganzi Tibet autonomous prefecture in southwest China. /CGTN Photo

The candidate works in the Tibetan-inhabited township of Gaba, some 80 kilometers west of Kangding, the capital of Ganzi. With less than two years’ experience, his qualification for the role must be carefully assessed.

For Huang and his team, they must make sure the field survey is ethical. In a group survey in the township government of Gaba, Huang said the evaluation team would be responsible to the Party and the cadre candidate, and perform an objective and fair evaluation.

The interviewees, mostly staff of the township government, are required to fill out anonymous questionnaires, covering different aspects of the candidates.   This, according to Huang, is the first step on whether they proceed with the selection of the candidate.

Public opinion survey through anonymous questionnaires and face-to-face interviews are usually conducted for cadre selection. /CGTN Photo

Random face-to-face interviews are also conducted. Huang said this is to gain a full understanding of the character and working style of the candidate. Such work is regular for them in Ganzi, a rugged mountainous prefecture with an area of more than 150,000 square kilometers.

Back in Kangding, the officials are searching through the candidate’s file. They also consult with staff from other sections of the department. A psychological test is also included.

After numerous investigations, the organization department will deliver a written report for deliberation. If there is no dissent during the public scrutiny process, the final appointment will be agreed upon.

A publicity period lasts five days and his information is checked via television, newspapers, and websites. But the inspection is not limited to this.

Wang Yejuan, an official from organization department of Ganzi CPC Party committee said the department also appointed supervisors from the public in 2013 to supervise their daily work and the cadre selection in Ganzi Tibet Autonomous Prefecture.

Various investigations on the candidates’ integrity are required, including files checking and public inspections through television, newspapers, and websites. /CGTN Photo

The appointment of cadres covers a specified procedure, from putting forward a motion, assessments and deliberations, to disciplinary inspections.

A set of provisional rules on the appointment and selection of party cadres were issued in China in 1995 and formally enacted seven years later. A new version was promulgated in 2014.

For Huang, such a process shows there’s a will for a better political environment.   He said that China has been improving and making new ordinances, and he and his colleagues feel it’s more scientific and normalized when they apply them to work.

As for the standards of cadre selection, Huang said that his department is putting more emphasis on integrity and that only those with an honest and upright character can be appointed.

Group discussions on candidate selection is conducted by different sections in Ganzi CPC Party committee, including the organization department and disciplinary committee. /CGTN Photo

He said that through field surveys and interviews, they get to know a cadre through different angles, and form a scientific reference for Party cadre selection after a comprehensive analysis.

The officials believe a stricter procedure for cadre selection will do good to locals, especially the ethnic minorities. /CGTN Photo

Party cadre selection and appointment in remote places like Ganzi are not simple, and stricter rules are being applied for the good of the locals, especially among the ethnic minorities. But for Huang and his colleagues, a fair and efficient cadre selection is always their main goal.