Rally cry by Xi sets economic priorities for China’s officials, absolves them of mistakes

President Xi Jinping has issued a rallying call in an unexpected Politburo meeting to help the private sector and mobilise officials across the nation to prioritise reviving the economy.

A vow to help tide over enterprises facing hardships, and a reassurance to officials that they can go bold in boosting the economy without worrying about the consequences of making mistakes, were among the highlights of the top decision-making meeting held on Thursday.

“The vast number of party members and cadres must have the courage to take responsibility and dare to innovate,” said a readout from the meeting, which was chaired by Xi.

The readout also mentioned the term “three exempts” – exempting well-meaning officials who make mistakes due to lack of experience; exempting officials who make mistakes in experiments, especially those in new domains without clear restrictions; and exempting officials who inadvertently err when promoting development.

“The fact that this ‘responsibility and punishment waiver’ is reaffirmed at today’s Politburo meeting, at which Beijing issued the most urgent call-out to fire up economic growth, is significant,” said a political scientist with Peking University who is not authorised to speak to non-state media.

“It is aimed at assuring officials that they can go bold in helping the economy and need not worry about the consequences, as many cadres have chosen to lie flat or not to vigorously push for reforms in recent years.”

Holding a Politburo meeting to discuss economic affairs in September is a rare move for the authorities, as normally such meetings dedicated to economic affairs are held in April, July and October, reflecting the authorities’ recognition of the urgency to revive the economy.