A competent ‘general’ must also be a good ‘platoon leader’

Key Words: CPC; governance; Chinese leaders

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When the Party secretary of a county went to visit an elderly, who once was named an advanced person, he found that the person’s son, who is also 50 years old, still does not have a stable job. The secretary instructed the staff on the spot to help them resolve the difficulties. But eventually how this task was carried out, no one knows. The result could have been more optimistic if the secretary had seen to it that the task was gone through with.

This event turns my attention to how leading cadres pay attention to implementation of tasks. Some say that the Party secretary of a county is like a "general". In this sense, the "number one" in any entity, department, system, or region can all be called the "general" of a particular environment. However, the "general" is only relative. When their superiors are considered, they are only "platoon leaders". The biggest difference between the two is that the "general" is a commander, but the "platoon leader" is only a "big soldier" who takes the lead in battle.

The current problem is that some cadres only play a good role as "generals" but have not performed the duty of "platoon leaders" very well. To put it plainly, they are used to telling others to do this and do that, but are not accustomed to in-depth practice or solid work. When it comes to implementation, they will start to talk with the manner "you should" instead of "we should". In implementing the work plans deployed by superiors, they act like merely passing on the orders or telling the subordinates to handle the tasks. These people really put themselves as generals.

An official once said the gap in development levels is to some extent the gap in implementation. His statement has a point.

Cadres should do solid work. Especially various cadres at the grass-root level, they should make good effort in this regard. A responsible cadre should set himself as a good example in implementation. Even if their responsibility is only to approve, forward, or assign the task to others, they should follow up with the progress and results, and solve any problems encountered. For important and difficult tasks, they should not only put their mind but also their hands on them.

Of course, to set oneself as an example in paying attention to implementation, not necessarily means to take care of all tasks big or trivial, which would only make the cadre trapped in tedious affairs. Rather, it means to undertake appropriate responsibility. Only such a manner is beneficial not only to the smooth accomplishment of the task but also for the improvement of the cadres' credibility.

Read the Chinese version: 我会当“将军”更要会当“排长”, source: People's Daily, author: Gu Zhaonong