China issued new criteria for selecting Party and government
officials through examinations Thursday.
The examinations focus on officials' ability to deal with
problems they will come across at their future posts, said a
spokesman from the Organization Department of the Central Committee
of the Communist Party of China (CPC), the Party's human resources
organ.
The new criteria replace the temporary version issued in
2000.
Applicants for Party or government official posts take exams
covering general and specialized knowledge and are interviewed by
the government's personnel department and the Party's organization
department.
The new criteria introduce updated methods of evaluation for
interviews and new content for examinations. For the first time,
they clarify the main qualities of an official, the spokesman
said.
The exam on general knowledge will test the applicants' academic
achievement, general understanding of public affairs, policies,
laws, government regulations and methods of administration. It will
also include questions on the Three Represents concept, as well as
the latest Party and government policies and the Constitutional
amendments.
The applicant must also have a good understanding of the
specialty in which he or she will work and related laws and
regulations.
Through the interview, applicants will demonstrate their ability
to express themselves and communicate with others, as well as their
personality, flexibility, creativity and decision-making
skills.
The criteria list 784 items that candidates for Party or
government posts should know and upon which they will be tested
through exams and interviews. This is an increase of 178 items from
the temporary version.
A national database and some qualified provincial databases are
available for preparing examination papers, said the spokesman.
Examinations and interviews are considered useful ways to
improve transparency and reduce a small number of corrupt
practices.
(Xinhua News Agency April 30, 2004)