Associated Press of Pakistan:
The 20th CPC National Congress report said that as the largest Marxist governing party in the world, the CPC must always stay alert and determined to tackle the special challenges that a large party faces so as to maintain the people's support and consolidate its position as a long-term governing party. What are your comments on this?
Tian Peiyan:
I'll take this question. This is a major conclusion made by General Secretary Xi Jinping based on his profound analysis of the historical position of the Party, the situation and tasks the Party faces, and the development and changes of the Party situation. This reflects the strategic confidence, sobriety and self-awareness for governance over the Party in the new era.
With over 96 million members and over 4.9 million primary-level Party organizations, the CPC is the largest Marxist governing party in the world. To govern such a large party, we must strictly adhere to the high standards of the advanced nature and purity of a Marxist party. The Party is well aware that maintaining the advanced nature and purity of both the Party and its members does not come naturally, and it will not be accomplished overnight and will not be done once and for all. Rather, it is an eternal issue that accompanies the Party's governance and its members. To address this eternal task and ensure that the Party is unified in thought, action and pace, and to ensure that the Party is always full of vitality and always stays at the forefront of the times, we must keep hard work and maintain perseverance and determination. Undoubtedly, this has not been an easy task.
Since the 18th CPC National Congress, we have exercised full and rigorous self-governance and solved many prominent problems within the Party. The Party has become stronger and more powerful through its revolutionary tempering. At the same time, the Party is clearly aware that deep-rooted problems within the Party have not yet been fundamentally resolved, and there is always the possibility that some old issues may rebound, that a slight slack will lead to a resurgence, and that new problems are still emerging. The (four) tests the Party faces in governance, reform and opening up, the market economy, and the external environment will exist for a long time to come, as will the (four) dangers of a lack of drive, incompetence, disengagement from the people, inaction, and corruption. It is also not an easy task to resolve problems within the Party in a timely manner, to withstand the Four Tests, and prevent the Four Dangers, so as to ensure that the Party never changes its nature and character.
It is based on a clear understanding of the Party's unique difficulties that General Secretary Xi Jinping stressed in his report to the 20th National Congress that full and rigorous self-governance is an unceasing endeavor and that self-reform is a journey to which there is no end. We must never slacken our efforts and never allow ourselves to become weary or beaten. We must persevere with full and rigorous self-governance, continue to advance the great new project of Party building in the new era, and use our own transformation to steer social transformation. This will enable our Party to stay true to its original aspiration and founding mission and remain the strong leadership core in building socialism with Chinese characteristics. Thank you.