Chinese President Xi Jinping on Sunday morning secured a third term in office after the party’s central committee elected him as its general secretary for another five-year term.
In his short victory speech at Beijing’s Great Hall of the People, Xi vowed to work diligently whilst adding that ‘the world needs China’.
“I wish to thank the whole Party sincerely for the trust you have placed in us. I promise to prove worthy of the great trust of our Party and our people,” said Xi.
“China cannot develop without the world, and the world also needs China,” he said before adding, “After more than 40 years of unflagging efforts towards reform and opening up, we have created two miracles — rapid economic development and long-term social stability.”
Additionally, the Chinese president pledged to achieve “rejuvenation of the Chinese nation”, a goal which requires the annexing of Taiwan. It was a callback to Xi’s speech from the opening ceremony of the Congress where he repeatedly evoked the Taiwan issue and warned the western and secessionist powers not to interfere in China’s business.
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The appointment as general secretary ensures that come the government’s annual legislative session in March next year, Xi will be appointed as the President for the third time.
Notably, Xi’s appointment comes a week after the CPC Congress started where he delivered a less than two-hour-long speech. By granting himself a third term, Xi has brought himself on par with the legacy of Mao Zedong, who established the People’s Republic.
According to a unanimously adopted resolution on amendments to the party charter, delegates subsequently supported a call requiring all party members to “uphold Comrade Xi Jinping’s core position on the Party Central Committee and in the Party as a whole.”
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Just before the closing ceremony, around 200 top party leaders that make up the Central Committee were chosen. Asserting his dominance from the get-go, Xi reshuffled the pack and only chose those who could
The likes of Premier Li, Li Zhanshu, Chen Quanguo, Wang Yang and Han Zheng have been omitted from the central committee list.
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(With inputs from agencies)
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