New Delhi: At the crucial once every five years Congress taking place next month, the country’s ruling Communist Party plans to rewrite the constitution to give President Xi Jinping additional authority in addition to supporting a record-breaking third term for him to rule the nation for another five years or longer.
Analysts predict that Xi’s position will advance as a result of the Communist Party’s announcement this week that it would rewrite its constitution at the upcoming national party Congress.
The Communist Party of China’s (CPC) 25-member Politburo, the body responsible for formulating party policy, convened last Friday and decided to emphasise that the 20th CPC National Congress is an important gathering that would take place at a critical time.
“Under the firm leadership of the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at its core, efforts should be made to unite the whole Party and all the Chinese people and lead them in building on past achievements,” the meeting said, dropping clear hints that Xi will continue to lead the party.
Since all of Xi’s predecessors, with the exception of the founding Mao, retired after two to five years in office, his continued service is seen as a significant policy shift in the leadership system.
This year, Xi, who is 69 years old and has been given the core leader status—a title also held by Mao—completes his second five-year tenure.
“The Party Constitution is the general charter of the CPC. Making amendments to the Party Constitution by the CPC at its 20th National Congress in line with new circumstances and missions will help the whole Party better study, abide by, implement and safeguard the dignity of this fundamental document,” an official press release issued after the politburo meeting said.
The CPC’s new constitution has sparked speculation that Xi, the party’s General Secretary and head of the military in addition to the Presidency, will be given more power, possibly even the title of party Chairman, a position that has only ever been held by Mao in the organization’s century-old history.
Except for Xi, the Congress will welcome in a slew of new central leaders, including a new Premier because the current Li Keqiang, the CPC’s second-ranking leader, announced his retirement.
According to analysts, the move will reinforce Xi’s position as party leader by better enshrining his leadership philosophies in the party charter that rules 95 million members, according to the Hong Kong-based South China Morning Post.
The move to change the party’s constitution will give Xi more leverage because it will better reflect his governing ethos, according to observers.
The Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era was incorporated into the party charter during the most recent party congress, which took place in 2017.
With the addition, Xi became the third party leader after Mao and his successor Deng Xiaoping to have a collection of his ideas included in the party canon.
A few months later, China changed its national constitution during the annual meetings of the national parliamentary body, eliminating the 10-year term restriction for the presidency and enabling Xi to hold the position for the rest of time.
According to the Post report, the adjustment was the clearest indication that Xi would defy decades-old tradition and hold onto power for more than two terms.
According to experts, Xi’s status will no longer be challenged following the most recent modification of the party charter in October.
According to Alfred Wu, an associate professor at the Lee Kuan Yew School of Public Policy at the National University of Singapore, Xi may simplify his complex political ideas to merely “Xi Jinping Thoughts,” putting him on par with Mao in terms of party doctrine.
A senior researcher at the National Institute of Strategic Studies at Tsinghua University and senior fellow at the Taihe Institute, Xie Maosong, said the party’s constitutional amendment would also need to include more elaboration of Xi’s major governance priorities, particularly those raised and carried out in the previous five years.
“It might include some key concepts from the 19th party congress, like the Two Establishes’, which has cemented his leadership position in the party,” Xie said.
Since the CPC was created in 1921, its constitution has been altered at every party conference to reflect the organization’s shifting priorities.
Since the 1990s, most amendments to the party constitution have emphasised the party’s historical position by adding the new leadership’s political beliefs to an ever-growing list of the party’s basic political doctrines.
