What does it mean when a number of provincial leaders, from different regions, claim the mechanism to appoint officials is problematic? Does it mean the current mechanism fails to provide them with enough chances of getting to know more about the officials promoted, or does it mean something else?

The claim was made at fault-finding sessions among provincial Party committee members. Such meetings, currently under way in major Chinese administrative establishments, are designed to promote a democratic working environment within the Party and among the authorities, and participants are encouraged to express whatever they think of their colleagues or the work they have done.

That many corrupt elements have been found to be abusing their power in various ways as they were promoted to higher positions does point to a problematic appointment mechanism.

Candidates for promotion are usually picked by leaders and then put on probation for a period of time before being promoted to a certain position. A promotion is usually published in advance for the public to voice their opinion. Votes are usually required within relevant units for the appointment.

Hand-picking officials for promotion by leaders, who usually pay little attention to the voice of the public, raises the possibility of an abuse of power. There are instances of major leaders selling positions for money.

The Communist Party of China has its own rules guiding official appointments. But questions have seldom been raised about such rules. Even organizational authorities, who are charged with appointing officials, are rarely blamed for making poor decisions.

If there is a shared belief that the current mechanism is flawed, there has to be a comprehensive review to straighten things out.

It should be the hope of the general public that such leaders can be more specific about the question they have raised. It would definitely be better for them to tell where the problems are and what ways they would put forward to solve them.

These might be what we can expect from these leaders in future meetings of similar nature. Admitting the mechanism being problematic is a step forward toward identifying the problems and finding their solutions.

(China Daily 10/16/2013 page8)