Xi Jinping Stresses Need for CPC Members to Uphold Party Leadership

BEIJING, Aug 17: Chinese President Xi Jinping on Monday stressed the importance of upholding the leadership of the Communist Party of China (CPC), calling it “imperative” for party members as he paid tribute to former president Jiang Zemin on the centenary of his birth.

Speaking at a ceremony held at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, Xi urged CPC members to draw lessons from Jiang’s political career, particularly his handling of major challenges, commitment to communist ideals and loyalty to the party.

Xi said the party must continue to maintain the centralised and unified leadership of the CPC Central Committee while strengthening internal governance and discipline.

He said these measures were necessary to ensure that the CPC continues to serve as the central leadership of China’s socialist development under the country’s current political system.

The ceremony was attended by thousands of party officials, including all seven members of the Politburo Standing Committee, the CPC’s top decision-making body. Several retired senior leaders also attended the event.

Former premier Wen Jiabao and former vice-presidents Wang Qishan and Zeng Qinghong were among those present. Former president Hu Jintao, however, was not reported to have attended, according to the South China Morning Post.

Jiang, who died in 2022 at the age of 96, served as CPC general secretary from 1989 to 2002 and as China’s president from 1993 to 2003. He also headed the Central Military Commission until 2004, helping oversee the country’s transition to a new generation of leadership.

Jiang assumed the party’s top position following the 1989 Tiananmen Square crackdown, a period that brought significant international pressure and sanctions against China.

During his leadership, China also faced major geopolitical and economic challenges, including the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the Asian financial crisis of 1997-98.

Xi praised Jiang for remaining committed to communist principles while making decisions during periods of political and economic uncertainty. He credited the former leader with helping maintain China’s reform process and socialist modernisation amid changing international circumstances.

Xi became CPC general secretary in 2012 and assumed the presidency the following year. He is currently serving his third five-year term and is widely expected to seek another term at the party’s national congress next year.

His tenure has extended beyond the traditional two-term limit followed by previous Chinese leaders, making him the country’s most powerful leader since Mao Zedong.

The Jiang centenary ceremony comes shortly before China is due to hold the funeral of former premier Zhu Rongji on Tuesday. Zhu, who died on August 12 at the age of 98, served as premier from 1998 to 2003.

Zhu was known for his efforts to combat corruption, restructure China’s centrally planned economic system and reform state-owned enterprises during a period of rapid economic transformation.