Comment丨 Lost is the right way

Recently, the website of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection and the State Supervision Commission released the news that Zhang Yang, member of the Education Work Committee of the Beijing Municipal CPC Committee and deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Education Commission, was suspected of serious violations of discipline and the law, had voluntarily surrendered, and was currently under disciplinary review and supervision and investigation. This is the second leading cadre at the department and bureau level in Beijing who voluntarily surrendered since March, after Hou Zibo, secretary of the party committee and chairman of Beijing Xianglong Company.

In 2020, a total of 16,000 people across the country voluntarily surrendered to discipline inspection and supervision organs, and 66,000 people took the initiative to explain problems to discipline inspection and supervision organs. Judging from the level, field, and age, those who voluntarily surrender include from ordinary cadres to cadres at the provincial and ministerial levels, from enterprises, public institutions, and village-level party organization staff to leading cadres of party and government organs, and from young cadres to retired leading cadres. Among these people, some of them were included in the scope of supervision, and they knew that the problems would be difficult to cover up, so they voluntarily surrendered; some took the initiative to explain the problems in order to get a lenient punishment and the opportunity to reform themselves. Behind the change from "phenomenon" to "normality" is a powerful deterrent formed by the continuous high-pressure anti-corruption posture, the correct way out pointed out by the policy inspiration of "punishing the former and the latter, curing the disease and saving people", and even more a manifestation of the continuous improvement of the political ecology.

Under the superimposed effect of promoting as a whole the "problem cadres" who do not dare to be corrupt, cannot be corrupt, and do not want to be corrupt, the only right way is to throw away the psychology of luck, lay down the ideological baggage, believe in the organization, rely on the organization, know the way back, and take the initiative to surrender. In dealing with comrades who have made mistakes, our party has always adhered to the principle of punishing those who have committed mistakes and curing the sick and saving people. As long as it does not reach the point of being irredeemable, it will give it the opportunity to correct it and help it cure the "disease". Understanding these truths, the "problem cadres" cannot be confused, and they cannot know that they have violated discipline, but instead of taking the initiative to find the organization to make it clear and seek help, they believe in the "small circle" and ask the so-called "able people" in society to help settle the matter; or "do not believe in Marxism-Leninism," believe in ghosts and gods, and ask Mr. Feng Shui and jianghu warlocks to give advice; and even transfer stolen money and stolen goods, form offensive and defensive alliances, and resist organizational censorship. If we have lost our party spirit, touched the bottom line, violated party discipline, and violated the law, whether we should resist censorship or voluntarily surrender, the situation and practice have long given the answer. The only right choice is to be proactive, and the most trustworthy is the organization.

Problem cadres who voluntarily surrender will undoubtedly experience "ideological struggle." The Discipline Inspection Commission supervision committee's determination and quantification of its motives for surrendering and its performance in the process are also a test question. In reality, there is no shortage of people who voluntarily surrender under the pretext of "wishful thinking," some pretending to take a posture and diverting their attention, in vain in the name of surrendering, but without giving an account; some avoid the important and light, and use small and broad, in an attempt to explain some minor problems and pass the test. In this regard, discipline inspection and supervision organs should "polish their eyes" and "wash their ears," listen to whether their words come from the bottom of their hearts, check whether their explanations are complete and thorough, accurately grasp the connotations and elements of voluntary surrender, comprehensively consider factors such as the timing of surrender, the content of the confession, and the stability of the confession, and analyze and judge their true purpose. When deciding on specific punishments, it is necessary to adhere to the unity of principle and flexibility, not only reflect the organization's recognition of the act of voluntarily surrendering, release the political effect to the greatest extent, and highlight the spirit of "punishing the former and the latter, curing the disease and saving people", but also persist in seeking truth from facts, taking the facts as the basis and discipline and law as the criterion, and dealing with any problems if there are any problems, so as to ensure that "the legal network is restored and the omission is not leaked."

To voluntarily surrender is to believe in the organization; to truthfully explain the problem, it is even more to believe in the organization. We must not be clever and take the initiative to surrender as a calculation, so that in the end we can only lift a stone and drop it on our own feet. Discipline inspection and supervision organs should persist in conscientiously performing their duties in accordance with rules and discipline and in accordance with the law, and under the guidance of promoting the strategic goal of not daring to be corrupt, not being able to be corrupt, and not wanting to be corrupt, constantly improve the effectiveness of controlling corruption, and realize the organic unity of political, disciplinary, and social effects.