Firsthand Accounts of Consolidation and Rectification | Only by Daring to Clash Can There Be True Unity
Only by Daring to Clash Can There Be True Unity
■ Li Jiayi, cadre of a company under a brigade of the 82nd Group Army
Over the past two years, the brigade has continued to deepen political consolidation and rectification (政治整训), requiring leading cadres to set the example from the top down and implement the "Five Rectifications" (五个整顿). As a grassroots cadre, I have been immersed in this and deeply moved by it. I have become more consciously willing to place myself under scrutiny and examination, and have taken the initiative to lead Party branch committee members in accepting criticism and tempering Party spirit (党性) through organizational life (组织生活).
In the second half of last year, I had just been transferred to the company when the outgoing political instructor specifically cautioned me: "When communicating with branch committee members, pay attention to your approach." He explained that the company's non-commissioned officer Party committee members (军士支委) made up a considerable proportion of the branch, and that all of them were platoon commanders in their respective sub-units—professionally strong, experienced, and with a keen sense of honor. But some of the Party member backbone cadres had somewhat "stubborn" personalities and were prone to losing their tempers, making it no easy task to bring the committee together as a cohesive team.
During that period, I was extremely cautious. I would always nod in agreement with the working methods of the Party member backbone cadres, and even when I spotted problems I was unwilling to raise them, for fear of causing unpleasantness. But as time went on, rather than growing closer, our relationships became somewhat distant—something I found very puzzling.
On one occasion, the brigade organized a special seminar on "The Political Responsibility of Grassroots Commanding Officers" in conjunction with the deepening of political consolidation and rectification. During the discussion, the political commissar cited a case from close at hand: a veteran squad leader in a certain company had a rough and impatient style of leading soldiers. Although the company's commanding officers privately felt this was inappropriate, they felt that this squad leader had served for a long time and had never had any problems with troop leadership before, so for the sake of "not souring the relationship," both chose to turn a blind eye. Unexpectedly, because no one offered a timely reminder, this squad leader was soon disciplined for uncivilized treatment of soldiers.
"Party spirit (党性) does not grow automatically with a Party member's age or length of service—it must be regularly subjected to tempering and refinement through organizational life. We must absolutely never play the 'agreeable old hand' (老好人) in the one-sided pursuit of unity, failing to hold the line where it must be held and failing to call a halt where a halt must be called. This is not only irresponsible to the organization, but even more irresponsible to the comrades around us…" The political commissar's earnest words instantly made my cheeks burn: wasn't this exactly the state I was in right now?
After reflecting on this in comparison with my own conduct, I quietly resolved: I could no longer play the "agreeable old hand." I absolutely had to dare to take responsibility and truly unite this committee that was "not easy to unite."
The test came quickly.
On one occasion, the company entered a critical period of combat-readiness assessments, and the sole hard-surface training ground became the focal point of contention. Two specialist sub-units had differing requirements for use of the training ground: one sub-unit had just been equipped with new equipment and was at a critical period of combat capability formation; the other sub-unit was about to participate in a higher-level assessment and wanted priority use. Both non-commissioned officer Party committee members serving as sub-unit commanders had their reasons and neither would yield.
"Both are competing for honor on behalf of the collective—that is understandable. But disregarding the overall situation and obstructing each other will inevitably harm the collective interest and organizational authority." This time, my stance was firm. I immediately pulled the two sub-unit commanders to the edge of the training ground, pointed out the deviations in their thinking, and guided them to calm down and work out a plan for organizing and scheduling use of the training ground.
In the end, the issue of ground usage was properly resolved, and the two sub-units even took the opportunity to join hands: when one sub-unit was training, the other proactively helped record scores, move equipment, and provide support—transforming from mutual intransigence into close mutual assistance.
At a subsequent Party committee meeting, I laid out this experience and had everyone engage in a debate centered on "How to build a united Party branch committee."
During the discussion, several comrades raised critical opinions of me: "a bit hot-tempered," "doesn't give face to veteran comrades," "puts people in an awkward position"… I accepted these humbly and indicated that I would pay more attention to my methods going forward. At the same time, I told everyone that problems must be viewed dialectically: if critical opinions all come from the public interest, and one dares to confront contradictions head-on and dares to engage in ideological clashes (思想交锋), then such genuine criticism will not only fail to harm unity—it will actually temper Party spirit and promote true unity.
One non-commissioned officer Party committee member was greatly inspired and stated on the spot: "Now that all levels are continuing to deepen political consolidation and rectification, even though we are not leading cadres, we should also strengthen our Party spirit cultivation and play a vanguard role. We cannot disregard the collective interest for the sake of surface-level harmony; instead, we must set aside our reservations, say what needs to be said, and openly and sincerely engage in ideological clashes."
Later, the Party branch committee as a whole became divided when recommending candidates for commendation. Some felt that competition winners should be recommended; others believed that the "old workhorses" (老黄牛)—those who toiled quietly and without recognition—should be recommended. After in-depth discussion, taking comprehensive account of competition rankings, day-to-day performance, and the views of officers and soldiers, the committee ultimately recommended a squad leader backbone cadre who had cultivated multiple top performers and had long been quietly dedicated to his post.
After the results were announced, the entire company's officers and soldiers were satisfied.
"Only by not fearing a red-faced argument can there be true unity" has become the shared consensus of the Party branch committee. We all believe that as Communist Party members, one cannot engage in the practice of maintaining a superficial atmosphere of harmony. When everyone is truly united, there is no mission that cannot be accomplished and no difficulty that cannot be overcome.
(Compiled by Wang Kang and Liu Fan, special correspondent for the PLA Daily)