The picture shows Cai Qi, a member of the Politburo Standing Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, attending the National People's Congress on March 12, 2023. (Screenshot from the web)
[People News] Among senior Chinese Communist Party officials, Cai Qi, Xi’s close confidant, is highly skilled in flattery techniques within China’s bureaucratic circles and has taken the art of praising the supreme leader to its peak. While serving as the Secretary of the Beijing Municipal Party Committee, Cai Qi was able to praise the party leader with expressions like "extraordinary talent, great strategic vision, and leadership style," "thoughtful concern for the people day and night," and "steering and navigating for us." He also commended his speeches as "high-level, insightful, and rich in content, providing fundamental guidance for the whole party in conducting theme-based education." He described his books as "an endless book to read," saying that if one continued studying them, they "would definitely advance from the kingdom of necessity to the kingdom of freedom and create more remarkable miracles." To be honest, within the CCP, there are few people willing to praise so unabashedly.
After Cai Qi was promoted to Politburo Standing Committee at the 20th Party Congress and became the top-ranking Secretary of the Central Secretariat, he frequently expressed his "loyalty" by frequently mentioning "Xi Jinping Thought," the "Two Establishes," and the "Two Safeguards."
For instance, on February 10 of last year, at the closing ceremony of a seminar for newly appointed members and alternate members of the Central Committee and leading provincial and ministerial-level cadres on studying and implementing Xi Jinping Thought and the spirit of the 20th Party Congress, Cai Qi's "sense of loyalty" was filled to the brim in his summary speech. The state media reported "Two Establishes" and "Two Safeguards" twice, both at the beginning and throughout the text.
Cai Qi stated that studying Xi Jinping Thought and the spirit of the 20th Party Congress "is not only the top political task at present and for a period to come but also a long-term strategic task." He emphasized the need to "promote the depth, practicality, and thoroughness of the study according to the requirements of 'comprehensive learning, comprehensive understanding, and comprehensive implementation.'" He urged to "firmly safeguard Xi Jinping's core position, safeguard the authority of the Central Committee and unified leadership, and constantly improve political judgment, comprehension, and execution, and to always remain highly consistent with the Central Committee with Xi Jinping at the core in thought, politics, and action."
This kind of expression is similar to his predecessor Wang Huning's speeches in January 2022 and January 2021 at the closing ceremonies of study seminars for provincial and ministerial-level leading cadres on the spirit of the 19th Central Committee’s Sixth Plenary Session and the 19th Fifth Plenary Session.
Generally, those skilled in flattery are also adept at changing their stance with the wind. Over three months ago, after rumors spread that the Party leader had "encountered issues" at the 20th Central Committee’s Third Plenary Session, unusual signals began appearing from the high ranks of the CCP's party, government, and military. Although Cai Qi, as Xi's confidant, did not turn against his master and at one point continued to emphasize "Xi Jinping Thought," "Two Establishes," and "Two Safeguards," such as in his speech at a symposium on August 23 commemorating the 120th birthday of Deng Xiaoping, recent developments like his absence from accompanying Xi on a trip to Fujian and Anhui, his notably low profile during Xi's visit to Russia, and the unusual economic inspections by Public Security Minister Wang Xiaohong (who is also a Secretary of the Central Secretariat) suggest that Cai Qi’s status may be changing, potentially beyond mere speculation.
Even more peculiar is that on November 1, Cai Qi, as a Standing Committee member, attended the closing ceremony of a seminar for provincial and ministerial-level leading cadres on studying and implementing the spirit of the 20th Central Committee’s Third Plenary Session. However, he did not appear on the homepage of Xinhua Net, and according to Xinhua’s report, Cai Qi’s tone of praise for Xi was also toned down compared to similar activities last year. Just a few days earlier, Xi had delivered a speech at the opening ceremony of this seminar.
At the closing ceremony, according to official media, Cai Qi stated that Xi’s speech "was not only a profound explanation of the spirit of the Third Plenary Session but also a powerful mobilization for the implementation of the decisions made at the plenary session… we must thoroughly study and implement it." He then abruptly mentioned the decisive significance of the "Two Establishes" and the importance of "Two Safeguards," all of which are related to loyalty to Xi.
However, when the report mentioned Cai Qi’s speech, it did not include "Xi Jinping Thought." The report merely stated that during the seminar, all participants were guided by Xi Jinping Thought to study Xi’s important speech at the opening ceremony and the spirit of the Third Plenary Session. Compared to last year, the report also lacked expressions like "strengthening confidence and determination under the strong leadership of the Central Committee with Xi Jinping at the core."
Furthermore, unlike the closing ceremony of the 2023 seminar for provincial and ministerial-level leading cadres, the report did not mention "establish and safeguard" twice. Amid constant rumors and widespread "rumors flying everywhere," Cai Qi did not explicitly call for everyone to "firmly safeguard Xi Jinping’s core position and consistently maintain a high level of unity with the Central Committee with Xi Jinping at the core in thought, politics, and action." Instead, he stated, "We must combine our understanding of the decisions of the plenary session with Xi Jinping’s series of new ideas, new perspectives, and new judgments on comprehensively deepening reform… we must fulfill the political responsibility of comprehensive reform," noticeably toning down his praise of Xi.
Logically, during a critical time when Xi's position is challenged, Cai Qi, as Xi's confidant, should be emphasizing "loyalty" more. However, his remarks are actually weaker than in 2023. This unusual behavior may indicate that both Cai Qi and Xi's statuses are not as high as before.
(First published by People News)
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