The Chairman of the Central Military Commission is responsible to the National People’s Congress and its Standing Committee. The main contents and ideas of the Central Military Chairman Responsibility System are that the national armed forces are led and commanded by the chairman of the Central Military Commission, all major issues concerning national defense and army building are determined by the chairman of the Central Military Commission, and the overall work of the Central Military Commission is chaired and charged by the chairman of the Central Military Commission.
In November 2017, the Central Military Commission issued the Opinion regarding comprehensively and thoroughly implementing the chairman responsibility system of the Central Military Commission. This is to carry out the spirit of 19th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and implement the Provisions of the Political Bureau of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China regarding strengthening and safeguarding the centralized and unified leadership of the Central Commission of the Party. This is of great significance for maintaining the authority and centralized and unified leadership of the Central Commission of the Party with Xi Jinping at the core, for insisting on the fundamental principles and system of the Party’s absolute leadership over the army, and for strengthening the steadfastness of maintaining and implementing the Chairman responsibility system of the Central Military Commission in the whole Army and Armed Police Force.
Such Opinion pointed out that the Chairman Responsibility System is the major achievements of the long-term development of the military leadership system of the Party and the State, and it condensed our Party’s valuable experience and fine tradition of building the army and administering the army. The overall and thorough implementation of the Chairman Responsibility System of the Central Military Commission is related to the fundamental direction of the people’s army construction, is relevant to the development of armed forces in the new era, is concerning the long-term stability of the Party and the State, and it also related to the future and destiny of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
Such Opinion emphasized that it shall be guided by Xi Jinping’s thought of socialism with Chinese characteristics in the new era, comprehensively implement Xi Jinping’s thought of strengthening the army and the fundamental principle and system of the Party’s absolute leadership over the Army. It is required to make sure the whole army is absolutely loyal, absolutely pure, absolutely reliable, taking firm orders from Chairman Xi, being responsible to Chairman Xi and letting Chairman Xi rest assured.
The great handle of a country is no more important than controlling the soldiers. Our army has always stressed that “military powers should be unified, and the military orders should come from one commander.” Such unified ordering commander shall be the core and leading chief. Both the Constitution and the Party Charter provide the Chairman Responsibility System of the Central Military Commission, it reflects our army’s supreme hegemony and command power, and it is an important part of the political system and military system of socialism with Chinese characteristics.
Long-term experiences and practices revealed that if the chairman responsibility system of the Central Military Commission is well implemented, the party’s absolute leadership over the army will be fundamentally guaranteed, and the cause of the party and the army will flourish. If the chairman responsibility system of the Central Military Commission is not properly implemented, the party’s absolute leadership over the army will be fundamentally weakened, and the cause of the Party and the army will be seriously damaged.
Since April of 2014, the Central Military Commission has set up the working mechanism of reporting, supervising and investigating and information service. Such working mechanism effectively promoted the Chairman Responsibility System of the Central Military Commission to operate institutionalized. Over the past five years, the building of national defense and the armed forces has made historic achievements and achieved historic changes. The most fundamental reasons for such achievements should be having the most powerful leadership of Chairman Xi and the systematic guarantee of the Chairman Responsibility System.
The purposes of making the amendments on the Party Charter are to ensure the absolutely leadership of the Communist Party of China to the armed forces and to follow the requirement of Rule of Law and keeping in line with the Constitution.