Crossing the river by feeling the stones / The political journey of a deputy provincial governor

Author: Guo Yu Huai
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2006-12-01
Features: "Crossing the Yellow River by Feeling the Stones": The Political Journey of a Vice Provincial Governor. From the Provincial Committee compound to Zhongnanhai, from the Yellow River Diversion Tunnel to the World Bank, the behind-the-scenes story of a challenging 20th-century engineering project. It's easy to be an easygoing official, but it's hard to be an official for the people. A must-read handbook for civil servants. "Life is short but worries are long," the parched provincial situation, the China in the mountain valleys. From County Party Secretary "directly promoted" to Vice Provincial Governor; rather lose the official hat than fail to bring Yellow River water; "tears wet the clothes at the sight of mountains and rivers." In 1983, Guo Yu Huai was urgently transferred from the position of Party Secretary of Lishi County, Shanxi to serve as Vice Provincial Governor of the provincial government—this unprecedented personnel move in China's political arena signaled that he would embark on an extraordinary journey. Guo Yu Huai's work is an extremely informative record of political life, organically combining a regional water project with the political career of a ministerial-level official, reflecting all aspects of social and public sentiment. From the Provincial Committee compound to the State Council, from the World Bank to the project site, it documents many previously unknown decision-making and strategic processes. This book is a groundbreaking reportage, as the author, drawing on 16 years of firsthand experience, has distilled profound reflections on history and the times. "Life is short but worries are long"—an senior official speaks of the past with such a spirit, hoping for the future.