Interview: China's whole-process democracy a major achievement of global governance -- Nigerian expert

ABUJA, Aug. 10 (Xinhua) -- China's whole-process democracy is one of the major achievements in global governance practices, a Nigerian expert has said.

"China's development achievements and ability to cope with crises are attributed to the high level of public trust in the government, which shows that China has found a model of democratic governance that suits its national condition and people," said Charles Onunaiju, director of the Center for China Studies of Nigeria, in a recent interview with Xinhua.

Onunaiju believes that people's degree of satisfaction as well as trust in their government are the standards of democracy.

Such democracy, according to him, has been reflected in the awe-inspiring social mobilization ability of the Chinese people amid the countrywide efforts to alleviate poverty and fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

As the founder of Nigeria's first research institution on China-Africa relations, Onunaiju has filled his office with books about China, including "Xi Jinping: The Governance of China" and "Up and Out of Poverty." His multiple visits to China also offered him chances to closely observe the country's democratic practices.

China's whole-process democracy resulted from a long-term practice, and the Communist Party of China (CPC) has demonstrated a full sense of democracy from the very beginning, Onunaiju said, noting, "The party forged a patriotic united front of all Chinese people across all social strata and ethnic groups, shaking off the stranglehold of feudalist rule and imperialist oppression."

Through the unremitting struggle of past generations, the People's Republic of China was eventually founded in 1949, starting with the practice of socialist democratic governance, and promoting the rise of China and the Chinese nation step by step, according to the researcher.

The most prominent advantage of China's whole-process democracy is the widest possible participation of the people, Onunaiju said, noting the National People's Congress and the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, usually known as the "two sessions," are the boldest framework of China's extensive, inclusive and consultative democracy.

The researcher views the "two sessions" framework as a great innovation of democratic practices, as it integrates electoral democracy with consultative democracy.

"China's whole-process democracy is an efficient institutional design that prioritizes consensus-building," he stressed.

Delegates to the two sessions, who have systems and platforms to communicate with the grassroots, act as a bridge linking voices of the people with policies of the central government. Therefore, everyone has an opportunity to participate in national decision-making, he observed.

China's "two sessions" are unique and offer broad lessons for deepening substantive democracy, he noted.

As a country with 1.4 billion people, China has managed to build consensus, focus on development goals, and attain remarkable achievements through a reasonable and effective design of its democratic system, Onunaiju said.

The expert believes that Africa, which has extensive engagement with China, can draw inspiration from the latter's practices.