An article published in a Japanese media outlet today highlighted concerns within senior levels of the Chinese Communist Party regarding Xi Jinping’s excessive centralization of power. This significant change has been noted by local officials.
Since Xi Jinping assumed power in 2012, various party institutions have rapidly expanded and extensively interfered in specific policies, including personnel arrangements and budget preparation, weakening the authority of the State Council of the CCP over time.
However, on June 30th of this year, an important meeting was convened by the Central Political Bureau of the CCP. The meeting approved a new regulation titled “Regulations on the Work of the Central Decision-making and Coordinating Institutions,” clearly defining the power scope of various party institutions.
According to the veteran media figure Nakazawa Keiji, local officials are highly sensitive to shifts in political winds in Beijing. He learned from sources familiar with the political and economic situation in China that officials in places like Shanghai and Shandong had already detected subtle changes by early June and began to make early strategic plans. Particularly in Zhejiang Province where Xi Jinping previously held office, just a week after the new central regulations were announced, on July 7th they swiftly convened a provincial party committee meeting to “convey and study the latest policy of the Political Bureau.”
During the Zhejiang provincial committee meeting, additional supplemental explanations were provided regarding the new central regulations, emphasizing that the central decision-making coordinating institutions would be “streamlined and integrated.” This aspect, not mentioned in the central announcement, highlights the urgent mindset of local officials to keep pace with actions from Beijing.
Nakazawa Keiji also pointed out that the restructuring of power in Beijing has already affected future personnel arrangements and budget allocations. The recent replacement in Xinjiang where the Party Secretary was changed from Xi Jinping’s confidant Ma Xingrui to non-Political Bureau member Chen Xiaojiang is seen as a clear indication of power realignment. This move likely sets the stage for the upcoming Fourth Plenary Session of the 20th CPC Central Committee at the end of this year, with more high-level personnel changes expected to follow.
Nakazawa Keiji cautioned that this political game within the CCP is likely to continue brewing at the upcoming Beidaihe Conference. The political maneuvers observed this summer hint at the quiet initiation of a new round of internal power plays.
– News Direct Production Team