Reserve Cadre

Author: Li Ge
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-04-01
Features: The head of the Personnel Department of the Municipal Organization and Personnel Commission, Huang, and staff member Li came to the design institute located on the outskirts of the city. The head of the organization department of the design institute, Bao Yi, specifically came to pick them up. Bao Yi knew the importance of their visit— they were to assess and select a deputy director for the institute. "I wonder if the two leaders have a target for the deputy director position this time? Or is this just a formality?" Bao Yi, who was familiar with both Huang and Li, often interacted with them in various departments, casually chatting along the way, with his words subtly probing for information.
Huang, like Bao Yi, was a grassroots-level official. Originally, all departments under the Municipal Organization and Personnel Commission were called "departments," but they were later renamed to "committees" to enhance the institution's prestige. Li, hearing Bao Yi constantly referring to them as "leaders," seemed uncomfortable and said, "Bao Minister, please don’t keep calling us leaders. I’m just a staff member. If you must call me, call me Xiao Li."
"Of course not, you’re from the Municipal Organization and Personnel Commission, our leading body. Naturally, you are our leaders," Bao Yi replied.
"Their secretary and director have repeatedly brought up complaints to the mayor and secretary, saying that the institute is always staffed by outsiders, with no room for promotion for their own employees. The Municipal Political and Legislative Committee has accepted their feedback, and the deputy director will be selected from among the institute’s own staff." Huang said calmly without revealing his thoughts.
"Design institutes haven’t promoted any county-level or division-level officials in years. Only one deputy director in charge of operations was promoted from within, while the rest are outsiders. After the retirement of the previous deputy director, rumors spread that someone would be sent from the Municipal Government, but over a year has passed, and no one has appeared yet." Huang merely smiled faintly, remaining noncommittal.
Li added, "Most officials in career departments are like this." The Personnel Department of the Municipal Organization and Personnel Commission is responsible for assessing and managing county-level leaders. Li is in charge of leaders in public institutions, which mainly include secondary and tertiary schools, research institutes, and design institutes—units with few administrative tasks but high ranks. Leaders assigned to such institutions are often grassroots-level officials from departments in the Municipal Government and Municipal People’s Congress that are hard to evaluate for political achievements. The saying goes, "If there’s no merit, at least there’s hard work," and at some point, these leaders are promoted to such units for consolation.
"The county-level and division-level positions in design institutes are worthless. If it were a county-level or division-level official, they would have been filled long ago," Bao Yi grumbled, thinking the same thing.
"You had objections to the person they sent before, didn’t you?" Li asked.
"You mean the head of the General Affairs Department in the Municipal Government Office? What education does he have? He’s just a driver. He came to the research department purely to retire early." The head of General Affairs that Bao Yi mentioned was originally the driver of the current mayor when he was still a vice mayor. After the vice mayor was promoted to mayor, he was transferred to the General Affairs Department and quickly became its head.
After the former deputy director of the design institute retired, the mayor proposed that he take the position of deputy director at the design institute.
Upon hearing this news, the design institute strongly objected. Because driving the mayor had earned him a county-level or division-level position, if he had driven the Premier of the State Council, he would have been appointed as a provincial governor or minister.