People’s Daily Publicly “Attacks Xi”

He is the General Accelerator, known for his ability to reverse. (People News AI-generated image)

[People News] People’s Daily recently published an article titled “Making the Promotion and Demotion of Leading Cadres a Normal Practice.” The article criticizes the fact that many officials within the Party can only move up but not down. They perform mediocrely, lack real ability, and get nothing done, yet they cannot be replaced. As a result, they occupy their positions without contributing—turning into “zombie leaders.” Superfluous officials and lazy officials are everywhere, while governance performance is extremely poor.

In response, Tang Hao, host of the self-media program Crossroads, said that this passage exposes a fundamental problem: the CCP’s officialdom is actually filled with far too many “useless and redundant officials.” They did not rise to power through outstanding achievements or performance, but through backdoor channels and personal connections. As a result, it becomes “the same whether you do well or badly”—no matter how you perform, no one can touch them. Meanwhile, truly capable and conscientious people are pushed aside, producing a situation of “bad money driving out good.” Why? Because these officials have powerful backers—support rooted in “power–money transactions” or “power–sex transactions.” Therefore, the places where they truly work hard are not in governance, but at the dining tables of higher leaders, with cash, or on pillows. As long as the leadership is taken care of, they can “move up but never down.”

Tang Hao further said that the communist system is one of “distribution according to power,” not “distribution according to labor.” How much you contribute or how much real work you do does not matter; what matters is how much power you hold. The greater your power, the more resources you are given, and the more freely you can act.

In addition, the People’s Daily article states: “At present, our country’s development environment is undergoing profound and complex changes. Strategic opportunities and risks and challenges coexist, and uncertain and unpredictable factors are increasing. There is an urgent need for a contingent of cadres with strong capabilities and solid work styles.”

Tang Hao pointed out that this passage reveals that the CCP’s governance is now facing a precarious and stormy test, including international politics, international trade, and the Taiwan issue. More importantly, there are domestic problems in the economy, people’s livelihoods, and employment. To this day, solutions to these problems have not been found. If conditions worsen further, public resentment could escalate into “popular unrest,” threatening the CCP’s rule. Therefore, the CCP is now urgently seeking cadres who “dare to shoulder responsibility, are willing to do the work, and can get things done” to deal with these difficulties. The result, however, is that corrupt figures are everywhere within the Party, while there is a lack of genuine talent for governing the country. After all, even the very top Party leader has been in power for 13 years and produced these results—yet he himself still cannot be removed.

Tang Hao believes that the People’s Daily article effectively acknowledges the failure of the CCP’s “14th Five-Year Plan.” China’s economy has fallen into severe deflation, a collapsing real estate market, weak domestic consumption, and a massive flight of foreign capital, all of which have fueled widespread public resentment. The “15th Five-Year Plan” is about to begin next year, so the CCP is urgently trying to reorganize its ranks in an attempt to save the economy and save the regime. At present, the CCP has officially fallen into a new crisis: a “talent crisis.” Li Keqiang, who genuinely understood economics, died suddenly in 2023 and was sent to Babaoshan after having too many conflicts with Xi. Seeing Li Keqiang’s fate, who would still dare to tell the top leader the truth or handle matters seriously? Therefore, the CCP’s inability to find talent today is entirely the result of its own actions. What remains for the Party is to shift blame and evade responsibility.

Tang Hao said that in the minds of ordinary Chinese people, the top leader himself is the very embodiment of “being able to go up but not down.” Netizens have posted comments such as, “Are they talking about Xi Jinping?” “Who are they talking about—Xi Jinping?” and “When will Xi Jinping step down?” Seen in this light, the People’s Daily article is attacking Xi rather than praising him.

Tang Hao concluded that the CCP’s talent crisis and economic crisis will absolutely not be resolved simply by allowing officials to “move up or down,” because the CCP’s officialdom operates on mechanisms of “reverse selection” and “officials protecting officials.” With “policies from above and countermeasures from below,” what we will see next is more officials falsifying data and fabricating achievements to deceive their superiors and protect their positions. In short, as long as this “power-based distribution” struggle system is not abandoned, the entire CCP government will only accelerate its aging and zombification. △