Chapter 40 Pay attention to criticism from the masses

Comrade Ma Mingfang is an old revolutionary who joined the Communist Party of China in 1925.He has been loyal to the cause of the party and the people all his life. When the "Gang of Four" was rampant, he was brutally persecuted.He sticks to the truth and never tells half a lie.His memory will live on forever.I knew of his fame when I was a child, and I really saw him when he was released from Sheng Shicai's prison in Xinjiang in 1946, when he returned to Yan'an and went to Suide.He was very kind, calm and serious.He is very concerned about and attaches great importance to matters related to the interests of the people.At the beginning of liberation, some cadres who came to work in the new districts from the old districts could not listen to a little criticism from the masses, but Mr. Ma attached great importance to it. He said that Communists should attach great importance to criticism from the masses.He seized such models in a timely manner and dealt with them publicly through newspapers, which was well received by the cadres and the masses.

Speaking of criticism and self-criticism in newspapers, I recalled an incident in 1950 when Comrade Ma Mingfang dealt with letters from the masses, which is still unforgettable to this day.In June of that year, Comrade Geng Li, director of the Propaganda Department of the Yulin Prefectural Committee, returned from a communication work conference held in Xi'an to strike the province. He passed the Guidebao Bridge 40 miles south of Yulin City, and heard people talking about it.Some said: "The bridge was damaged by the flood, and the transportation from Hengshan to Yulin is very inconvenient!" Some said: "This spring, the government allocated more than 290 stones of grain, and the construction started, and it was basically completed by the end of June. When dug to the bottom of the stone, the lime is not as good as mud, and the bridge cracks before people can walk on it. Worry about ruining hundreds of stones of millet!" Comrade Geng Li did not go to the bridge to check it in person, nor did he talk to the leader. Talk to the chief of the high-tech section of the county government where I worked, and when I returned to the office, I submitted an article to the newspaper, suggesting inspection and handling.The newspaper editors thought it necessary to publish this matter, so they published it in the "Criticism and Suggestion" column of the second page of the 352nd issue of "Yulin News" on July 1.Unexpectedly, Comrade Geng Li was hit by critics. On July 5, cadres from the Yulin land and county government went to Beiyuemiao area in the north of the city to help farmers harvest wheat.Comrade Geng Li has good political accomplishment, in order to avoid ridicule from the masses.Not a single word was returned.When I came back, I reported this situation to the prefectural committee.The head of the organization department of the prefectural committee came to talk to the head of the high section. Gao Jing said in front of the minister: "I scolded! I will continue to scold." He spread it in the newspaper to the whole country, embarrassing me.It doesn't matter if I scold him in this small place.If you want me to express my attitude in the newspaper, I am afraid of insulting the newspaper.If he wants to write, he will clarify the facts before speaking.snort!I also have a problem with your prefectural committee, and there are rumormongers in the prefectural committee...!

I immediately wrote a letter to the comrades in charge of "Shaanxi Daily" about the matter of the chief of the high-tech section cracking down on critics, asking them to forward the letter to Ma Mingfang, secretary of the provincial party committee, and explaining that I reported the situation to the higher-level party committee with the party spirit of a Communist Party member, hoping to attract attention , so as to guide us to carry out future criticism work in newspapers. "Shaanxi Daily" attached great importance to this matter, and immediately forwarded my opinion to Secretary Ma. According to the instructions of Comrade Ma Mingfang, "Shaanxi Daily" quickly published the headline "Gao Bu Cracks Criticism" in the "Criticism and Suggestion" column on August 29, and asked the Yulin Prefectural Committee to urge him to review .I said in the letter: "After this problem occurs, how should the Yulin Party Committee deal with it? How to deal with it? This is a question that many comrades are urgently concerned about. Because since the inspection of the work of the Northern Shaanxi District Party Committee in Yulin by Comrades Li Jingying and Wu Tailiang, everyone is willing to use it as an example. It is a new situation that the weapons of criticism and self-criticism are used to improve work, but there are still some responsible comrades who lack understanding and cannot deal with this problem in a timely manner. I sympathize with Section Chief Gao Buhengyun and blame Comrade Geng Li for not seeking truth from facts '. I think Comrade Geng Li has shortcomings and should be reviewed, but he is not a 'rumour-monger'. Regardless of whether the opinions of the masses are correct or not, he still listens to what the masses say. If the critics demand that every critic is 100% correct, Then a leader said: "There are five to ten percent correctness, and we should also welcome it." It seems that I don’t think much. Although I have directly talked with the chief of the high-tech section, it is always very reluctant. What is the truth? According to the secretary-general of the prefectural committee after inspecting the bridge: "The crack is not a fact, but the lime is not good. It is a fact. But not as good as mud is too exaggerated, and the foundation has been dug out on the stone plate. As for the reflection of the local people, it is indeed the same as what Comrade Geng Li said. This is certain, and it is not a rumor.” The Committee made the "Decision to Resist Criticism of Comrade Gao Buyun".The decision specifically pointed out: "Because of the lessons learned from this incident, the prefectural committees have drawn the attention of the entire party in the divisions: among some of our comrades, there are indeed situations of being proud, taking credit, refusing to criticize or suppressing criticism inside and outside the party, although After rectification and study, there are still many comrades who do not have a deep understanding of the "Decision of the Central Committee to Launch Criticism and Self-criticism in Newspapers and Periodicals". Therefore, comrades are required to continue to study this timely decision so that they can fully grasp the spirit of this document , launch mass criticism of our party and government staff, and better improve our work." At the same time, "Shaanxi Daily" published a short commentary "Opening the Door to Self-Criticism", emphasizing: "Yulin The prefectural committee deals with this problem by linking it with improving leadership and improving work, and learning lessons from a specific problem to improve leadership and improve work methods. Many years after the incident, people have experienced the tests of various movements, thinking of Ma Lao's handling of the erroneous cadres, taking prudent treatment and patient education, and they still can't forget it.Our cadres must serve the people wholeheartedly. When doing practical and good things for the people, we must look at actual results. If good things are done well, the people will always miss and praise them!Comrade Ma Mingfang is truly a communist who upholds the truth.