|
  |
|
 |
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
China's likely cabinet picks
By Willy Wo-Lap Lam, CNN Senior China Analyst
HONG KONG, China (CNN) -- Much of the world's focus at this year's National People's Congress that opens in China on March 5 will be on the cabinet to be formed after the retirement of Premier Zhu Rongji. Barring last-minute changes, the following veterans should dominate the State Council which will be endorsed by parliamentarians in mid-March. Wen Jiabao: The youthful-looking Zhu protégé is a shoo-in for the premiership. Wen, 60, has vast experience working in Communist Party headquarters as well as in the impoverished western provinces of the country. Wen's biggest challenge will be financial reform, particularly in the banking sector, saddled with at least a few trillions of yuan of non-performing loans. The former geologist will also be judged on how well he can improve the livelihood of farmers, at least 200 million of whom are unemployed. Huang Ju: The former party secretary of Shanghai is slated to become executive vice-premier, the No. 2 position in central government. It is not certain, however, whether Huang, 64, a protégé of President Jiang Zemin, will be given an important economic portfolio. It is likely that, as in the case of out-going Executive Vice-Premier Li Lanqing, Huang will be handling policies regarding education, technology, sports and culture. Zeng Peiyang: A principal economic adviser of Jiang's, the 64-year-old Zeng is tipped to play a major role in economic policymaking, particularly relating to industry, infrastructure, and enterprise reform. Zeng, a fluent English speaker, served for several years in the Chinese Embassy in Washington in the 1980s. The no-nonsense administrator has frequently traveled with Jiang to countries and regions including Japan, Europe and the U.S. Hui Liangyu: The former party secretary of Jiangsu Province is expected to be promoted to vice-premier in charge of agriculture. Hui, 58, a rising star in party politics, is thought to be close to Politburo Standing Committee member Zeng Qinghong, President Jiang's alter ego. A foremost task of the veteran agrarian expert is to improve the competitiveness of Chinese agriculture in the wake of the nation's accession to the World Trade Organization. Wu Yi: China's most senior and best-known female cadre, Wu Yi, is also expected to be made vice-premier. Wu, 64, a Zhu protégé who played a key role in China's accession to the WTO, will be handling foreign affairs and foreign trade. In the first few years, however, Wu's power in foreign policymaking will be more limited than that of the incumbent vice-premier in charge of diplomacy, Qian Qichen. Political analysts say apart from veteran party and government functionaries, Chinese authorities could make history by appointing a couple of successful entrepreneurs as ministers. For example, the Commission on the Administration of State Assets, a new high-level department to be set up at the NPC, may be headed by a state entrepreneur and not a traditional bureaucrat. The induction of entrepreneurs into the government's top echelon is indicative of the leadership's determination to make decision-making more efficient and market-oriented.
|
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
|
|
