Policy advisory committee urged
- By Wang Zhiyong
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E-mail China.org.cn, March 8, 2013
Responding to calls for high-level government reform, Yu Keping, deputy director of the Compilation and Translation Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China and World Economic Forum's Global Agenda member, called for the creation of a state-level policy advisory committee to promote reform efforts and limit the influence of interest groups who undermine government policy.
Yu made the remarks during an interview with Economy & Nation Weekly on March 4, 2013.
Yu is a noted scholar having published many books including the widely-read, "Democracy is a Good Thing." He has also acted as an advisor on political reform to the Chinese government.
Since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, Chinese experts and scholars are calling for the creation or restoration of an institution similar to the State Commission for Restructuring the Economic Systems, which was established in 1983 and ended operation in 1998. In response to this, Yu Keping noted that it's one of many solutions that can be used to help push forward China's ongoing reforms.
He said the advantage of this solution is that an agency specializing on functional reform will give a strong impetus to further reforms. But if the agency becomes part of the government, it would inevitably begin to develop interests of its own.
Yu suggests an alternative – a state-level policy advisory committee. "All major national reform and development policies are subject to the deliberation and hearing by this committee," he said.
According to Yu, the advisory committee should have two main features:
On one hand, it should be independent from all Party and governmental departments so as to be free from the influence of any interests groups and ensure the voices of all groups are heard. It is expected to make sure that the national policies are complete, comprehensive and strategic.
But on the other hand, its power is limited. This means that the committee itself has no power make any public policies.
Yu noted that many problems in present China extend beyond the scope of economic management and administrative governance. "Economic reforms could not go deeper if China's social and political systems, including party-government relationship, remain unadjusted," Yu warned.
Yu also suggested that the advisory body be placed beneath the highest decision-making body, the CPC Central Committee.
"As for staffing of the advisory committee, the focus should not be on recruiting new researchers, but integrating and coordinating the roles of all existing think tanks," Yu explained.
Modern politics dictate that all major policy decisions should be subject to expert consultation and review, Yu concluded.
