The Speech at the National Conference on Building the Role of the Party Within the State-Owned Enterprises

Xi Jinping's speech at the National level meeting held in Beijing on October 10, 2016, demonstrated the importance of Party building in state-owned enterprises.

Xi Jinping pointed out that by strengthening and improving the Party's leadership over state-owned enterprises and strengthening and improving the Party building in state-owned enterprises, state-owned enterprises should become the most reliable force for the Party and the state, and an important force for resolutely implementing the decisions and arrangements of the Party Central Committee. We should make them an important force for implementing our new development concept and deepening the reform in an all-round way, as well as important force in implementing major strategies such as the "One Belt, One Road" an important force in strengthening the comprehensive national strength, in promoting economic and social development, ensuring and improving people's well-being and an important force for our Party to win great struggles with many new historical characteristics.

We should adhere to the policy that is conductive to maintaining and increasing the value of state-owned assets, improving the competitiveness of the state-owned economy and amplifying the functions of state-owned capital, as well as promote the deepening reform of state-owned enterprises, improve their level of operation and management, as well as strengthen the supervision of state-owned assets, and unswervingly make state-owned enterprises stronger, better and bigger.

Xi Jinping emphasized that state-owned enterprises are the important material and political foundation of socialism with Chinese characteristics, and are the important pillars and relying forces of our Party in governing and rejuvenating China. Adhering to the Party's leadership and strengthening the Party's construction are the glorious tradition, state-owned enterprises are the "root" and "soul" of the Party's leadership, as well as the unique advantage of our state-owned enterprises. .

Under the new situation, the general requirements for state-owned enterprises in adhering to the leadership of the Party and in strengthening the building the Party are as follows: insist in strictly governing the Party, focus on comprehensively solving the problems that weaken, dilute, and marginalize the Party's leadership over the state-owned enterprises and its building, adhere to the Party's unshakable leadership over state-owned enterprises, to give full to the leading and political core role of the Party organizations in SOEs, as well as ensure the implementation of the Party's and state's policies and Party’s major arrangements in state-owned enterprises.

The Party's leadership over state-owned enterprises is an organic unity of political, ideological and organizational leadership. The Party organizations in state-owned enterprises playing the roles of leading and political core, melts down to one point, ensure to uphold the correct direction, consider the overall situation and ensure implementation. We should correctly define the rights, duties and the working methods of Party organizations in decision-making, implementation and supervision, so that the work of the Party organization can be more systematic, institutionalized and effective. We should deal with the relationship between Party organizations and other governing bodies in SOEs, clarify the boundaries between their powers and duties, achieve seamless convergence in their work, and form a corporate governance mechanism in which each two sides play their own role, bear their own responsibilities, operate in coordination with an effective checks and balances mechanism.

We should adhere to the principle of wholeheartedly relying on the working class, improve the democratic management system with the workers' councils in SOEs as its basic form, promote the openness of factory affairs and business operations in SOEs, realize the right of workers to know, participate, express their opinions and right to supervise, as well as fully mobilize the enthusiasm, initiative and creativity of the working class. Enterprise leaderships should listen to the opinions of its employees on major decisions, and the major issues which involve the vital interests of employees must be deliberated and reviewed by the Staff Representative Conference. We should adhere to and improve the staff director and staff supervisor system, and encourage staff representatives to participate in corporate governance in an orderly manner.

Party committees at all levels should do a good job in Party building in state-owned enterprises, and implement the principle of strictly governing the Party into practice. Local Party committees at all levels should incorporate Party building in state-owned enterprises into their overall work plans and their master plan for Party building Party committees (leading Party groups) in the state-owned enterprises should fully implement their main duties.

Leading Party groups should strengthen the construction of the Party and anti-corruption work in state-owned enterprises, put discipline and rules in front of them, consistently implement the spirit of the eight provisions of the Central Government, carry out the rectification of problems found during inspections, and seriously investigate and deal with the misappropriation of state-owned assets and the transfer of benefits. The “Speech” provided important guidelines for strengthening the Party's leadership over the SOEs and as well as the construction of the Party in state-owned enterprises under new historical conditions.