Centralized Power and Grassroots Control: How Xi Jinping Reshaped China’s Governance

hi I'm dong Shan welcome to digging to China where we explore China in depth to review unique perspectives for years numerous overseas dissidents have labeled all CCP policies over the past decade as failures pointing to incomplete initiatives and unfulfilled political objectives they mockingly call Xi Jinping the Emperor of Unfinished projects implying that every Endeavor by the CCP ends in Failure with no plan and ever achieving its intended outcome since 2014 China's economy has undeniably worsened the real estate bubble has burst the debt crisis is intensifying foreign capital is fleeing at an unprecedented rate unemployment is soaring and the younger Generations are increasingly rejecting marriage and Parenthood from a purely economic perspective the CCP appears to falter at every turn shiin Ping's series of impulsive and poorly conceived economic stimulus measures have consistently proven to be wasteful and ineffective however economic development is merely one of many responsibilities of a regime between 2001 and 2014 the CCP prioritized economic growth as its core Mission channeling its majority of its Manpower resources and finances into this endeavor after 2014 however the regime shifted its focus away from Economic Development and by 2017 GDP metrics were no longer used to evaluate or promote officials at various levels the 19th party Congress outlined a new guiding principle of the party stay true to the original aspiration and keep the mission firmly in mind this original aspiration and Mission refer to upholding the four cardinal principles say safeguarding the regime's stability and ensuring its continuity the four cardinal principles familiar to most Chinese people were forly introduced by D sha ping and incorporated into the party constitution in 1992 they state adhering to the Socialist path upholding the people's Democratic dictatorship maintaining the leadership of the Chinese Communist party and adhering to Marxism leninism and Al don't thought these four cardinal principles are the foundation of our nation the phrase Foundation of our nation reveals the ccp's true priority and Mission economic development on the other hand is merely a tool to sustain regime stability when economic growth comes to into conflict with regime stability the CCP will unhesitantly sacrifice economic growth to focus on maintaining control there should be no Illusions about this industrial civilization and the totalitarian regimes are fundamentally incompatible in the long run industrial civilization is rooted in equality freedom and fair market practice achieving optimal resource allocation through wider spread Market exchanges totalitarian regimes by contrast concentrate all power in the hands of one leader and the channel benefits through a centralized Authority ensuring that the ruling Elite to both power and resources young people raised in an era of industrial civilization naturally resist authoritarianism and have an innate aversion to totalitarian rule to preserve itself a totalitarian regime will inevitably seek to suppress industrial civilization and a push for de-industrialization Russia is a prime example in the context between the industrial civilization and the Soviet Union's totalitarian regime industrial civilization claimed the Victory leading to the Soviet Union's collapse in 1991 however ambitious figures have never been ured Supply on Russian soil after coming to power in 2000 Vladimir Putin spent two decades successfully implementing deindustrialization consolidating a new authoritarian order in the process at present Putin holds absolute power in Russia but the price has been steep the country has lost its capacity for industrial and economic IC production Russia can no longer produce bicycles clothing zippers or buttons returning to the initial question there is no doubt that all of the ccp's economic policies over the past decade have failed however this failure was entirely intentional an effort to deliberately stagnate the economy let me emphasize again economic management is only one aspect of governance in other areas the CCP policies have achieved complete success below I will elaborate on these accomplishments the first major success of the CCP is its significant transformation of the political decision making framework over the past decade the central decision making system has been thoroughly restructured moving towards governance through Central committees this include the central leading group for comprehensive deepening reform the central financial and economic Affairs leading group the central leading group for party building the central leading group on ecological and Environmental Protection the central leading group for education and the central leading group for inspections among others these committees have completely taken over the responsibilities of their respective administrative departments assuming authority over policy approvals personal appointments and performance evaluations consequently the state Council has been effectively sidelined excluded from the decision making process and reduced to a rubber stamp with no substantive role this dramatic shift in the decision- making mechanism merits closer analysis take the central financial and economic Affairs leading group as an example initially established in the 1950s it functioned as an advisory body while its members could make recommendations on economic policy they lacked direct control over administrative departments and could not issue binding directives as a result the group was a purely consultative body with no actual power during the reform and opening up era the ccp's top level political decision-making framework gradually took shape the party secretary handle the political Affairs while the premier managed economic matters creating a system of check and balances together with other political Bureau members they formed a distinctive collective decision making structure a key aspect of this system was the division of responsibilities between the party secretary and the premier with each counterbalancing the other this balance was most evident during the JN zing and and Jong g t their roles were clearly defined Jong though nominally the head of the central financial and economic Affairs leading group largely refrained from intervening in economic matters drong G on the other hand held near total authority over economic decisions major initiatives such as the tax sharing reform State on the Enterprise restructuring and the WTO accession negotiations were all spe headed by Drew Rong G meanwhile Jang Zing focused on political Affairs including the development of the three represents Theory which broaden the scope of party membership under this Theory private entrepreneurs and professionals could join the party as they were seen as representing the development directing of advanced productive forces during the H one period the roles of the party secretary and the premier were clearly defined and both largely stayed out of each other's domains if there were any criticism it could center on who gin's policy of non-interference which meant no changes to political system and no political reforms instead Premier W jaal was allowed to pursue limited economic reforms such as Market oriented changes in state owned Enterprises and introducing a competitive mechanism for survival of the fittest by 2010 of the 45 major commitments China made when joining the WTO only 23 had been fully implemented the remaining 22 including Promises of equal Market access and Telecom industry reforms were not pursued in March 2010 Google announced its withdrawal from China in protest of tightening content censorship highlighting the resistance to political reforms within the system in 13 with Xi Jinping taking office the political landscape shifted dramatically supported by the CCP red family Elite she is swiftly outmaneuver the Premier League K backed by the youth league faction the balance of power that had existed between the party secretary and the premier quickly shifted to sheep leading to the establishment of a single dominant figure in leadership with the so-called decision by one person without checks and balances between the party secretary and the premier the political Bureau standing committee lost its ability to provide a counterbalance as a result collective decision making was a sideline and xiin pin became the sole Authority on all major decisions in this context the central financial and economic Affairs leading group seized to be a mere advisory body and quickly gained real power after 2015 Department's respons responsible for economic matters such as National development and Reform Commission the Ministry of Finance the ministry of industry and information technology and Ministry of Commerce and the People's Bank of China were required to report to dis group and undergo performance evaluations with the power of veto this meant that by 2015 the central financial and economic Affairs leading group could unate decide if a minister was competent or should remain in office effectively stripping the state Council of its Authority in economic decision making and evaluation all such Powers were now centralized under xiin ping the head of the Financial Group to manage these responsibilities each economic sector needed a dedicated leaso which led to an expansion of the group staff the organization became more formalized and processes were clearly defined in March 2018 the group was renamed the central financial and economic Affairs committee establishing a comprehensive management structure with structured reporting processes it formally took over the state council's economic management functions rendering the state Council a purely advisory body and reducing the premere to a ceremonial figure shiin Ping's most significant achievement was the establishment of working group governance which completely dismantled the collective decision making framework that had evolved since the reform and opening period through this he concentrated power into a single individual realizing the idea of power in one benefits through one after 2018 China truly became totalitarian state for the CCP Elite this transformation was a remarkable success every move was methodically planned and executed flawlessly leaving the other political faction stunned and helpless once dominant faction such as the youth Leal faction the shanii faction the Anu faction the tanin cck and the Shanghai G were gradually crushed their allies were imprisoned their business dismantled and ultimately they had no choice but to relinquish power suffering a total defeat regarding the concentration of power there was no unfinished business at the top on the contrary it was a resounding success unprecedented in this scale even maon for all his strength never succeeded in sideline Joe and Li and the state Council but the current CCP a managed to do just that shiin Ping's second major accomplishment was the creation of a deeply entrenched the system of control the CCP enhanced the existing neighborhood and Village committees formalizing these Grassroots governance organizations and integrating them into the official power structure take the neighborhood committee for example the traditional neighborhood committee have now evolved into Community Management committees which have set up and organized the grid system urban areas are divided into grids with appointed grid workers overseeing and managing them to ensure that every individual's life including birth aging sickness and death is monitored the key word here is management it's about control not service the community grid management system is designed to monitor we individuals belong to any categories defined by the CCP as dangerous if you have to fit these categories expect your daily life to be tightly controlled by grd workers you will be required to report activities such as shopping in advance and if you don't grd workers will visit your home to conduct face-to-face inspections refusing this inspection could result in being labeled as mentally ill and forcibly sent to psychiatric hospital by the Community Committee so before you refuse an inspection make sure you know how to convince a doctor that you are not mentally ill the level of control that the CCP exerts over the Grassroots today is unprecedented in Chinese history in the past all major uprisings were driven by a breakdown in Grassroots control where power could no longer penetrate to the most basic levels of society the CCP however has learned from these past failures during the 3 years of covid-19 lock Downs it implemented an extraordinary tight Grassroots control system the grid worker system as of now the number of grid workers has surpassed 4 million greatly enhancing the ccp's oversight and control at the Grassroots level ensuring that no aspect of the population escapes surveillance for example whenever a group of more than 10 people gathers whether for a game of mar or a drinking session the grid workers are immediately notified and the report to higher authorities if a grid worker Falls fails to receive this information within an hour their monthly performance evaluation is marked as unsatisfactory and they lose their entire performance bonus one can only imagine how intensively this grid worker will monitor your every mov next month in short the CCP has now achieved an extraordinary feat it has come concentrated power at the top while simultaneously implementing a comprehensive Grassroots grid system that effectively monitor every individual in Chinese history centralized power at the top was traditionally accompanied by a relaxation of control at the Grassroots level this contradiction has always existed in the system even the most authoritarian Emperors of the past could not maintain both centralized control and and the strict Grassroots oversight however the CCP has accomplished both marking a historical achievement that could change the way political science and the public administration are taught if there were a Nobel Prize for political control Shi Jinping would certainly win it and as long as he remains in power he could continue to Win It indefinitely with no one else being able to compete most people find it difficult to understand just how challenging it is to simultaneously centralize power at the top and maintain strict control over the Grassroots if we look at history we see that the most authoritarian Emperors often had the weakest control over the Grassroots the impoverished masses linked together and unregulated would eventually rise up in Rebellion when their connections reached a critical mass the issue of how to maintain tight control over the Grassroots while consolidating power at the the top has long been a fundamental challenge in public administration one that even leaders like Hitler struggled to address his solution was to create a balance through the manufacturer of internal and external enemies such as the genocide of Jews and declaring war on the West in a desperate attempt to stabilize this power Dynamic at this point in the relatively peaceful environment the Chinese government has managed to resolve the challenge of balancing top level centralization with Grassroots control it has effectively subdued the population preventing any significant unrest regardless of soaring unemployment or growing discontent among the lower classes nothing causes any substantial disturbance while isolated incidents may still occur such as the tragic death of a child in pen County Shan on January 7th locals briefly protested the government's response was Swift and efficient following standard procedures to handle such situations the measures included immediate intervention from military and police forces imposing a Citywide lockdown while internet and communication channels were fully shut down the grass R's GD management system was quickly activated thoroughly investigating all involved individuals and categorizing the responses some arrested others placed under surveillance this well coordinated response proved extremely effective and within just two days two days the issue was resolved without any social consequences this incident highlights the Chinese government's unparalleled reach and control given China's vast size local conflicts between citizens and officials are frequent in the past resolving these issues would take weeks and often become widely known now however such events are completely suppressed within 48 hours without any public Ripple this demonstrates the unprecedented level of control the government has achieved over both top level power and Grassroots management marking an unprecedented peak in Chinese history the Chinese government employs a variety of methods in public administ ation here are three notable strategies first the systemic suppression of regional dialects in the economically Advanced Eastern areas from cantones to Shanghai these dialects are increasingly at risk of Extinction with the younger generation largely unable to speak them the aim behind this is clear eliminating cultural diversity strengthens National unity and compliance true control is is achieved when every citizen conforms to a uniform standard second the implementation of a deeply ingrained education system promoting hatred and subjugation this includes instilling animosity towards private Enterprise foreign power such as Japan the US and European nations and ideologies of equality and freedom it cultivates disain for life and a nature while simultaneously encouraging subordination to Authority this method is highly effective today's youth have largely became a generation devoid of independent thought or personality and this state is unlikely to change third the creation of a comprehensive information blockade that reaches every individual regardless of your status influence or whether you use public platforms private chats or group messages everything you say is meticulously monitored this surveillance comes from a multitude of departments agencies and entities to the extent that the listing all of them would be impossible absolute control over information leads to unlimited escalation of surveillance intensity this represents a historical achievement that no other autocratic regime past or present has been able to achieve and this unparalleled level of control it becomes nearly impossible for the average citizen to resist through pressure tax tactics surveillance and media control the regime has reduced the possibility of descent to a minimum any attempt to organize or Express dissatisfaction is a fraught with tremendous risk however I remain convinced that if the Chinese Communist Party were to collapse it would likely be due to internal defraction history shows that the strongest fortresses are often breached from within when internal conflicts intensify factions break apart or power struggles become uncontrollable these will be the factors that ultimately cause regime's downfall I believe this day is not far off it is bound to come thank you so much for watching if you like this video If you find this video helpful please like it drop a comment below and hit the Subscribe button right here it really helps YouTube suggest my video to others I'll be back with more content soon until then be well