Home Page/Public Lecture Series/Innovation and Modernization of Governance Keping Yu, Dean of School of Government, Peking University
Innovation and Modernization of Governance Keping Yu, Dean of School of Government, Peking University
Author：俞可平 Source：深圳创新发展研究院 Date：2016-06-30
On June 26, Professor Keping Yu, dean of School of Government, Peking University and former deputy director of Compilation and Translation Bureau of CPC, delivered a speech entitled “Innovation and Modernization of Governance” at the 10th session of the Public Lecture Series, hosted by the SZIDI. Professor Yu claimed that a scientific and reasonable system is necessary for the modernization of governance in the first place. Now that administrative omission occurs as the tides of reform ebb, it is essential for government officials to restore their beliefs.
In his speech, Professor Yu underlined that the scientific, reasonable, coordinated and sustainable nature of a system is the basic condition for the modernization of governance.
The Decision adopted at the 3rd Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee pointed out that “The overall goal of deepening the reform comprehensively is to improve and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics, and to promote the modernization of the national governance system and capacity.” This overall goal is of great theoretical and practical significance as it has further clarified the direction and requirements for the modernization of our country.
However, Professor Yu argues that in reality, the implementation of the comprehensive reform is in face of many challenges and problems, as explicit in the case of Yang Lei and the incident where the traffic police assaulted two young ladies verbally in Shenzhen. Professor Yu warns that it would be dangerous if a government loses its credibility. The problems of governance also include the lack of motifs for innovations in governance, the high administrative costs, and the obsession of formalism. He stressed that on one hand, the government is promoting very meaningful goals that are strategic interests to modernize governance; while on the other hand, such governance is the key to modernization.
How to address the problems now existing in the governance? Yu pointed to clarification of targets as a must.
In his view, 9 targets must be made clear for government innovations or the modernization of government governance, including democracy, rule f law, responsibility, services, high quality, benefits, professionalism, transparency and probity.
To sum up, Yu believes that the government has made much progress in innovations in these years, for example the progress in political reform and the great progress in the current requirement for a law-based government. The 4th Plenary Session made a decision on all-round promotion of the rule of law, plus the calls for a government of responsibility, services, benefits, integrity and transparency. It’s good to have a target.
The modernization of government governance cannot be separated from modern technical tools. He suggested that, in addition to the use of basic legal and administrative means, the present government should also be adept in using market tools, social tools, tools of mass media and network tools. The governments at all levels must streamline administration and institute decentralization to let the market and the society handle what they should. In particular, it is necessary to fully leverage modern IT and network technology to enhance the transparency, opening and administrative efficiency of the government.
Yu concluded finally that government innovation is the inevitable path to propel the modernization of national governance. Only by following a track of democratic rule of law is it possible to correctly propel the modernization of national governance. Without highly developed democracy and governance, it is impossible to achieve the good governance of the society and the modernization of national governance, nor realize the great revitalization of the Chinese nation.
In his speech, Professor Yu underlined that the scientific, reasonable, coordinated and sustainable nature of a system is the basic condition for the modernization of governance.
The Decision adopted at the 3rd Plenary Session of the 18th CPC Central Committee pointed out that “The overall goal of deepening the reform comprehensively is to improve and develop socialism with Chinese characteristics, and to promote the modernization of the national governance system and capacity.” This overall goal is of great theoretical and practical significance as it has further clarified the direction and requirements for the modernization of our country.
However, Professor Yu argues that in reality, the implementation of the comprehensive reform is in face of many challenges and problems, as explicit in the case of Yang Lei and the incident where the traffic police assaulted two young ladies verbally in Shenzhen. Professor Yu warns that it would be dangerous if a government loses its credibility. The problems of governance also include the lack of motifs for innovations in governance, the high administrative costs, and the obsession of formalism. He stressed that on one hand, the government is promoting very meaningful goals that are strategic interests to modernize governance; while on the other hand, such governance is the key to modernization.
How to address the problems now existing in the governance? Yu pointed to clarification of targets as a must.
In his view, 9 targets must be made clear for government innovations or the modernization of government governance, including democracy, rule f law, responsibility, services, high quality, benefits, professionalism, transparency and probity.
To sum up, Yu believes that the government has made much progress in innovations in these years, for example the progress in political reform and the great progress in the current requirement for a law-based government. The 4th Plenary Session made a decision on all-round promotion of the rule of law, plus the calls for a government of responsibility, services, benefits, integrity and transparency. It’s good to have a target.
The modernization of government governance cannot be separated from modern technical tools. He suggested that, in addition to the use of basic legal and administrative means, the present government should also be adept in using market tools, social tools, tools of mass media and network tools. The governments at all levels must streamline administration and institute decentralization to let the market and the society handle what they should. In particular, it is necessary to fully leverage modern IT and network technology to enhance the transparency, opening and administrative efficiency of the government.
Yu concluded finally that government innovation is the inevitable path to propel the modernization of national governance. Only by following a track of democratic rule of law is it possible to correctly propel the modernization of national governance. Without highly developed democracy and governance, it is impossible to achieve the good governance of the society and the modernization of national governance, nor realize the great revitalization of the Chinese nation.
