【Epoch Times News on December 11, 2025】Amidst continuing power struggles within the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) and the downfall of many high-ranking officials, the CCP mouthpiece, People’s Daily, issued a sudden call in an article, urging “the ability for leading cadres to move up and down to become the norm.” It stated that the aim is to “transition officials who are idling away to lower positions,” as those who lack virtue or ability will be moved down. Many netizens on overseas platforms mocked, “Are they talking about Xi Jinping?”
The CCP’s central organ, People’s Daily, published an article on December 11th entitled “Making the Ability for Leading Cadres to Move Up and Down the Norm,” stating that the CCP has the problem of pushing out the good to make way for the bad. It emphasized the need to utilize officials who are willing and capable, while redistributing those who are slacking off or not performing up to standard.
The article highlights the key and difficulty of enabling officials to move down effectively and addresses the issue of demoting underperforming cadres. It stated, “Position is not a ‘steel chair.’ Those who lack virtue or ability, who do not shoulder responsibilities or take action, will be reassigned.”
Comments were disabled under the official Weibo post by People’s Daily. Following reports by foreign media, this news sparked mockery among overseas netizens on platform X:
“Is ‘leading cadres being able to move up and down’ referring to officials below Xi or Xi himself? This distinction is crucial, it is the essence of this article.”
“They have been shouting for over 70 years that officials can move up and down. Indeed, when some move up, the previous group promoted by the former leaders move down, that’s the CCP’s version of ‘moving up and down.'”
“Yes, when the emperor says the country is in a mess, it’s always the fault of his courtiers!”
“The crucial point is for the ruling party to be able to move up and down, otherwise anything else is meaningless.”
“Are they talking about Xi Jinping?”
“Curious, who are they trying to promote?”
“When will Xi Jinping step down?”
In fact, the Chinese authorities have referred to the concept of officials being able to move up and down for several years. Before the 20th National Congress of the CCP in September 2022, Xinhua News Agency released the CCP’s revised “Regulations on Promoting the Ability of Leading Cadres to Move Up and Down,” focusing on solving the issue of demotion. Age criteria were removed, with the addition of provisions for “early retirement.” Commentator Zhongyuan at that time indicated that this reflected a publicized power struggle in preparation for the 20th National Congress.
The People’s Daily article stated, “Those who lack virtue or ability, who do not shoulder responsibilities or take action, will be reassigned.” On December 5th this year, a blogger on platform X, “Tiny Reverie,” published an article titled “Suggesting Xi Jinping Resign,” recommending Xi Jinping’s resignation due to placing personal interests above national interests and having a narrow-minded approach.
The author listed a series of offenses by Xi, including his reluctance to take responsibility: whether during the Wuhan COVID-19 outbreak or the floods in Zhengzhou, Xi Jinping has never proactively taken responsibility nor visited disaster areas promptly. Xi Jinping’s capabilities are not suitable for continuing to serve as the President of the country. Should he persist in his leadership role, it will bring great calamity to the country and the people.
Since Xi Jinping took office as General Secretary in 2013, calls for his resignation have not ceased.
In February 2020, Xu Zhiyong issued a letter of persuasion; in October 2022 during the Beijing Sìtòngqiáo incident, banners displayed by Peng Li called for “boycotting classes and work, impeaching the dictatorial traitor Xi Jinping”; at the end of November to early December 2022, protests against the CCP’s “zero-COVID” policy erupted in multiple Chinese cities with slogans such as “down with the Communist Party, down with Xi Jinping.”
In early August this year, the “China Action” movement issued a “Declaration of Worldwide Resistance” in various locations globally, calling for an end to the CCP’s dictatorial rule and Xi Jinping.
Prior to the CCP’s military parade on September 3rd, locations across Beijing displayed slogans against communism on restroom doors, such as “down with the dictator” and “the CCP should have fallen long ago,” dubbed by netizens as the “restroom revolution.”
Around the time of the CCP’s Fourth Plenum in October this year, anti-communist slogans appeared in various parts of the mainland, demanding “Xi Jinping step down, end organ harvesting, cease dictatorial tyranny, CCP step down, stop human rights abuses.”
On the third anniversary of the “zero-COVID” policy protests, on the evening of November 26th, anti-communist and anti-Xi projections were displayed on the exterior wall of the Chinese consulate in New York, with the message reading, “Your time is up, step down.”