How does the Chinese Communist Party govern the country?

Chapter 12

Sectional governance is the most distinctive feature of the contemporary Chinese governance model.In China, there are both a large number of vertical organizations called "tiao" and horizontal organizations at all levels called "kuai".

The so-called "tiaotiao" refers to the functional departments or institutions that connect different levels of government up and down, including departments, institutions and their directly affiliated enterprises and institutions.Taking environmental protection as an example, the central government has the Ministry of Environmental Protection; the provincial government has the Provincial Environmental Protection Bureau; the prefecture-level city has the Environmental Protection Bureau; and the county-level government has the Environmental Protection Bureau.The so-called block refers to the different departments or institutions within each level of local government according to the management content.For example, a county-level government in Shandong has departments such as the Finance Bureau, Judicial Bureau, Education Bureau, Environmental Protection Bureau, and Personnel Bureau to manage different businesses.

Some Western scholars refer to the interweaving of the horizontal and vertical lines of power formed by China's compartmentalized management as the "matrix" problem.Li Kanru believes that "all large-scale organizations must deal with the matrix problem. Since China has produced the largest organization in the history of the world, the complexity of its matrix is ​​unprecedented."

The compartmentalized governance model has its own advantages.On the one hand, implementing block-by-block management meets the comprehensive management needs of local governments.The management of any local government is comprehensive, and block management can comprehensively coordinate various public affairs, improve management efficiency, and reduce multi-management conflicts.Today, when the socialist market economy is implemented, it is difficult to establish a market economy without an authoritative and unified government to carry out effective regulation.For example, in order to build China's largest water conservancy and hydropower project, the Three Gorges Hydropower Station, a ministerial-level unit "Three Gorges Office" (Office of the Three Gorges Project Construction Committee of the State Council) was established at the central level to coordinate with other departments of the State Council to promote the Three Gorges water conservancy work.Another example is that in order to promote coordinated regional development, the central government has formulated a strategy for the rise of the central region and a strategy for revitalizing old industrial bases such as the Northeast.In order to implement these strategies, comprehensive coordination agencies such as the "Central Office" (National Office for Promoting the Rise of Central China) and "Northeast Revitalization Office" (the Office of the State Council's Leading Group for Revitalizing the Northeast Region and other old industrial bases) were established, and the leaders at the central level Take the lead.On the other hand, the implementation of the management model is to meet the needs of government functional departments to implement special affairs management from top to bottom.Its advantage lies in the top-down implementation of special affairs that the government can manage by itself, which can ensure the fairness and unity of the unified functional affairs of various regions, and ensure the smooth and accessible management of professional business. To put it bluntly, it means strong execution; It can also get rid of the restrictions of local protectionism.If the central government implements a water conservancy policy, it will pass through the Ministry of Water Resources, through the provincial water conservancy department, down to the lowest township water conservancy station.This one-stop approach is conducive to policy implementation.Another example was in 2010, when the Ministry of Public Security issued an order, the leaders of the public security departments across the country came forward to receive interviews in person, which solved many common people's concerns at once and severely cracked down on criminals.At present, to solve global and complex issues such as environmental protection issues and food safety issues, we must rely on the top-down, top-down combination to form a joint force.

However, the disadvantages of compartmentalized governance are also very obvious.The fragmented system does not set up institutions based on the functions that governments at all levels should undertake, but puts too much emphasis on "matching the upper and lower levels and aligning the left and right". As a result, each level of government is almost as thick as the upper and lower levels, and many unnecessary Institutions, especially township governments, are "small but well-equipped".

The "seven stations and eight offices" in townships have resulted in a large number of idle personnel and bloated institutions.This governance mechanism makes it difficult to implement the functions and powers stipulated in the Constitution and the Organic Law of Local People's Governments.

Taking grass-roots governance as an example, even if the combination of divisions is implemented, in fact, the power lies with the divisions, and the responsibility lies with the divisions; financial power and administrative powers.In terms of financial power, the departments of industry and commerce, taxation, public security, and courts have all implemented vertical management, and financial power is collected upwards; townships as grassroots governance lack choices and realize government revenue at the same level, and the independence of financial power is poor.In terms of power, township governments have been dismantled of their responsibilities such as providing production services, managing social security, and developing education, and the power of township finance and power is empty. "Thousands of threads above, one needle below".Chinese civil servants working at the grassroots level are relatively hard-working, and the "entertainment" of various inspections is sometimes physically and mentally exhausting.

The divisional governance model will also form contradictions between the upper and lower divisions, resulting in unequal public goods and public services, resulting in self-enclosure and fragmentation.As the "heart" of Shanghai, Suzhou, Wuxi, Changzhou, Hangzhou and other important industrial cities in the Yangtze River Delta, Taihu Lake is seriously polluted. In 2006, a blue-green algae outbreak caused the people by the lake to guard the big lake but have no water to drink.In the past five years, Jiangsu Province has invested 20 billion yuan in special funds for the treatment of Taihu Lake every year. By the end of 2011, a total of 100 billion yuan had been invested to salvage 280 million tons of blue-green algae from Taihu Lake, but blue-green algae still broke out every year.

The emergence of these phenomena is mainly related to the system design of multi-management and compartmentalization.This reminds us that the Rhine River, which flows through nine countries including Switzerland, Germany, France, and the Netherlands, was once called "European sewer" and "European public toilet" by the world because of its pollution.

But a few years later, the Rhine River has transformed itself into a model of cross-basin river pollution control, with clear water in the river, fish and shrimp leisurely, flowers and willows on the riverside, and people wandering in it.This is related to the adoption of an effective coordination mechanism and a reasonable balance of interests.

The CCP has been in power for more than 60 years, and has never stopped adjusting the relationship between the central and local governments and the relationship between governments.The achievement of great achievements shows the rationality of the existing institutional structure; the existence of contradictions and difficulties also shows that the existing institutional structure still has room for reform.The key now is to actively explore and formulate a top-level design for the relationship between the central and local governments, so that the powers and responsibilities of the central and local governments are clear.Perhaps it is a rational choice to take the road of rule of law and formulate a law at the national level.

(End of this chapter)