PLA Daily: The Secretary is the 'Head of the Class', and Must Never Be Treated as the 'Head of the Household'

The secretary is the "head of the class," and must never act as the "head of the household"

PLA Daily · 2024-12-11 13:34:51

An orchestra is composed of different musicians. Only under the unified coordination and exquisite conducting of the conductor can the different sections form a whole and harmoniously play a melodious tune. Chairman Xi pointed out: "The 'No. 1 figure' of a leadership team should become such a conductor, adept at coordinating 'multiple voices' into 'a single piece of music,' so that the decisions of the leadership collective reflect objective reality as much as possible and conform to the interests of the people." This has strong enlightening significance for party committee secretaries and deputy secretaries of the military to take the lead in carrying forward intra-party democracy and implementing democratic centralism.

Intra-party democracy is the lifeblood of the Party and an important foundation for a vigorous and healthy intra-party political life. "Leading cadres must cultivate democratic literacy as a leadership ability and master it as a leadership art." Within a party organization, whether a situation of speaking one's mind freely and lively can be formed, and whether correct centralization can be carried out on the basis of fully developing democracy, largely depends on the democratic style, capability level, and leadership art of the secretaries and deputy secretaries. Customs are formed from above; habits are transformed from below. Only when secretaries and deputy secretaries take the lead in developing intra-party democracy and are adept at using democratic methods to make scientific decisions, coordinate relations, resolve contradictions, and promote work, can a comradely relationship of democratic equality, a political atmosphere of democratic discussion, and a good environment for democratic supervision be formed within the Party.

Our Party has always attached importance to fully developing democracy when making major decisions, widely listening to opinions and suggestions from all sides to achieve scientific, democratic, and law-based decision-making. Today, a few leading cadres unconsciously bring administrative titles into the Party, acting condescendingly so that other comrades dare not boldly express their true thoughts; some treat the localities and areas under their charge as "independent kingdoms" or "private domains," and if other members of the team speak up a bit more or hold different opinions, they consider it an infringement on their authority and a lack of support for their work; still other secretaries and deputy secretaries lack the awareness to actively accept supervision, and the problem of absent or ineffective supervision remains prominent. If these problems are not corrected, they will seriously affect intra-party democracy and are unconducive to fostering a healthy intra-party life atmosphere.

Democratic centralism: democracy first, centralization second. Within a party organization, secretaries, deputy secretaries, and members maintain an equal relationship, possessing equal rights to speak and vote when discussing and deciding issues. Members of party organization leadership teams at all levels are on the front lines of implementation, mostly serving as persons in charge of a specific work or field. They are familiar with the situation, have direct feelings, and possess the right to speak. Secretaries and deputy secretaries must focus on equal communication so that members can feel at ease. Although the secretary is the "head of the class," they must never regard themselves as the "head of the household," turning the relationship with members into an administrative superior-subordinate relationship, or treating the responsibility of presiding over the daily work of the party organization as a power higher than that of other members. Every person has their strengths and weaknesses. No matter how strong a person's ability and quality are or how rich their experience is, there are areas where their vision and energy cannot reach. For a team or a force to be strong and powerful, they must help and learn from each other, draw on the strengths of others, achieve complementary abilities and advantages, give full play to the overall function of the team, and achieve benign interaction among the "class of people."

Allowing people to speak is the minimum requirement for a democratic style. Facts show that in a place where the truth cannot be heard, the team has no combat effectiveness, and the unit will not have a good atmosphere. Secretaries and deputy secretaries must have the broad-mindedness and character of "water becomes an ocean only by being humble, and mountains reach the sky without boasting of their height," carry forward a pragmatic and realistic style, view other comrades with appreciation, approval, and respect, guide everyone to speak their minds freely, and enhance the courage of team members to tell the truth. It is necessary to actively create a good atmosphere for democratic discussion, encourage telling the truth, speaking facts, and expressing inner thoughts, and allow comrades to finish what they have to say. Special attention must be paid to consciously ensuring that in the discussion and decision-making of party organizations, one does not "personally set the tone" before a meeting, "personally cast the final word" during discussions, or "personally finalize the outcome" when forming resolutions. With the exchange and collision of various opinions and the active burst of various insights, the atmosphere of democratic deliberation will become increasingly rich.

Being good at listening to and adopting the opinions of team members and the masses is an important mark of the democratic style of secretaries and deputy secretaries. Being as open-minded as a valley to gather all opinions can unite people's hearts, correct biases and point in the right direction, and increase trust. In intra-party life, due to different perspectives and positions, views on problems also vary from person to person. Comrade Chen Yun said, "Money cannot buy people who oppose your opinions. Having opposing opinions can prompt one to think about problems." When studying problems and conducting discussions, secretaries and deputy secretaries must establish the awareness that "listening to both sides brings enlightenment, while heeding only one side brings confusion," and ensure they are not prejudiced, stubborn in their own opinions, or dismissive. Secretaries and deputy secretaries should widen the avenues for speech and keep channels smooth. Even when hearing different opinions, they should practice empathy, listen with an open mind, think seriously, and through comprehensive analysis of various different opinions, form scientific plans and correct decisions.

Intra-party supervision is an important link and guarantee of intra-party democracy. Fully developing democracy, accepting criticism and supervision from party members, and looking at oneself squarely amid democratic reviews are work styles formed by the Party and the people's army in the long-term practice of revolution and construction. Every move, word, and deed of secretaries and deputy secretaries has a demonstration and leading role; they must consciously strengthen their awareness of actively accepting supervision to prevent loss of control over power, decision-making errors, and behavioral misconduct. They must rectify their ideological concepts, consciously implement various supervisory regulations, and realize that the method and approach to solving problems and improving oneself is not to cover up problems, but to face them squarely and make up for shortcomings; some "spicy" reviews are not about nitpicking or finding faults, but about pulling a sleeve or giving a helping hand. With a broad mind and a noble realm, secretaries and deputy secretaries who sincerely accept supervision and carry out correct centralization on the basis of fully developing democracy can truly turn the advantages of democratic centralization into the political, organizational, institutional, and working advantages of our Party.

(Author: Chen Qinghua, Unit: Central Military Commission Reform and Compilation Office)

Duty Editor: Bai Xue, Xian Yang

Technical Support: Li Xingyu, Liu Tong

Editor-in-Chief on Duty: Yan Jinjiu