Reborn as a Noble’s Son
Chapter 997 - Chapter 997 Chapter 953 Research by the Petitions Bureau

Chapter 997: Chapter 953: Research by the Petitions Bureau Chapter 997: Chapter 953: Research by the Petitions Bureau At the beginning of December, the mornings at Hongjiang River were always enveloped in a faint mist. During this period, the weather in the Hongjiang area had been quite poor, with continuous overcast and rainy conditions, occasionally mixed with sleet. The road traffic suffered severe damage, but fortunately, this was limited to just two of the cities in the northwest part of Hongjiang.

Today, however, was a rare clear day with bright sunshine. Right at the start of the workday, Hong Feng walked in from outside, holding documents in his hand which he placed on the table, and reported, “Secretary, this is your work arrangement for today. In the morning, you will visit the Bureau of Letters and Calls for research work, and in the afternoon you will go to the Civil Affairs Bureau to study disaster relief efforts.”

After finishing, Hong Feng paused before adding, “Also, the secretaries of Wenchun City’s Municipal Committee Li Youquan, JingShan City’s Municipal Committee Huang Zhehe, and XinZhou City’s Municipal Committee Zhang Jianwei have all called, saying they would like to report their work to you and asked if you have any time.”

Hearing Hong’s words, Nie Zhenbang’s mood at the moment was quite good; evidently, the second “fire” had been ignited, and the effects were immediately apparent.

Looking at Hong, Nie Zhenbang unusually joked, “Hong, you must not have slept well last night either, right?”

Nie Zhenbang’s meaning was clear to Hong, who by now had a general understanding of Nie Zhenbang’s mentality and personality after a month of working together. Secretary Nie’s character appeared to be very strict, but in reality, in everyday work, he was far more approachable than most leading cadres. Of course, this was predicated on not touching on some of Secretary Nie’s taboo lines, such as using power for personal gain.

Hong Feng had also relaxed a lot in front of Nie Zhenbang and said with a smile, “The Secretary has divine strategies. Indeed, I didn’t really sleep, with one phone call after another coming in. Before, there was not much contact, but suddenly they all emerged.”

Hong’s description of the situation was very familiar to Nie Zhenbang. These grassroots individuals always possessed tremendous ability to grasp political trends.

After a pause, Nie Zhenbang said with a smile, “Hong, this is a test for you, whether you can withstand the ‘alcohol’ test, and stay true to your heart. This is a critical time.”

With a play on words, Nie Zhenbang was somewhat reminding Hong, who had proven to be quite satisfactory over the past month, and with whom Nie Zhenbang was quite pleased. Thus, at this moment, Nie Zhenbang kindly reminded Hong that now he was a highly regarded figure throughout the province, with one after another of lower-level cadres seeking his company, and Hong should be able to selectively arrange these engagements.

Hong understood immediately and nodded, “Please rest assured, Secretary, I definitely will not let down your teaching and cultivation. I will surely withstand all kinds of temptations.”

At Hong’s words, Nie Zhenbang laughed heartily and changed the subject, “Hong, let’s get ready and take a look at the Bureau of Letters and Calls.”

Hongjiang Province’s Bureau of Letters and Calls was an institution located within the office building of the Hongjiang Provincial Committee. In terms of rank, it was on par with other departments and commissions.

Accompanied by Xu Hongzhuan and Hong Feng, Nie Zhenbang arrived at the Letters and Calls Bureau on the west side of the first floor, where Bureau Chief Zhang Zhongqian and the entire party group leadership team were already waiting in the corridor.

With the arrival of Nie Zhenbang, everyone greeted him with welcoming applause and smiles. Zhang Zhongqian approached, smiling, “Welcome Secretary Nie to inspect and guide our work.”

At this, Nie Zhenbang also wore a smile, turning to Xu Hongzhuan beside him, “Secretary-General, look, Comrade Old Zhang is now engaged in empty formalities.”

This remark made Zhang’s smile even broader; the term “Comrade Old Zhang” conveyed a significant implication of his value in the eyes of the Secretary. This fully showed that the Secretary was very satisfied with him.

Laughing, he responded, “Secretary, you’re wronging me. Although the Bureau of Letters and Calls is housed within the Provincial Committee office, everyone from top to bottom eagerly anticipates your inspection and guidance for our work, and this is absolutely heartfelt.”

Nie Zhenbang gave a faint smile and waved his hand, “Different strokes for different folks. In society and within the system, there are all kinds of people. Every person has their own way to survive. Zhang Zhongqian’s words, although obviously flattering, are not completely unacceptable. As long as it’s within a certain baseline principle, Nie Zhenbang can accept it.”

He laughed heartily and said, “Director Zhongqian, let’s not go into empty talk this time. The secretary-general and I have come specifically to hear your work report. Consider this a major test for you, so try not to be nervous.”

Nie Zhenbang’s words stirred something in Zhang Zhongqian’s heart; there was a deep implication in Secretary Nie’s words. However, for Zhang Zhongqian, this was certainly a good thing. He promptly nodded and said, “Secretary, please come this way.”

Inside the meeting room of the Bureau of Letters and Calls, Nie Zhenbang and his party took their seats. The meeting room was already arranged, very simple, with no green plants or fresh flowers, no pastries or fruits for the visitors, everything was done in accordance with the spirit of the instructions from Comrade Qiao Yiren at the 21st National Congress.

The heating in the air conditioning was turned up high, giving the room a warm, spring-like feel. Nie Zhenbang did not speak from the main seat; on his left, Xu Hongzhuan gave Zhang Zhongqian a meaningful glance.

Over here, the party group of the Bureau of Letters and Calls took their places at the meeting table under the leadership of Zhang Zhongqian. Zhang Zhongqian opened the notebook in front of him and began to report, “Under Secretary Nie’s concern and the Provincial Committee’s high attention, the Bureau of Letters and Calls, as an important department for maintaining the party-mass, cadre-mass relationships, and social stability, follows the deployments of the central and provincial party committee and government. The bureau has deeply studied the instructions from our superiors and has carried out the concept of truly serving the people and doing good for them throughout the organization. Last year, we received over 8,000 petitioners and tens of thousands of letters, including 25 transfers of central petitions. The implementation rate was one hundred percent, ensuring the efficient and effective progress of the province’s petition work…”

Zhang Zhongqian’s words were proper and standard; the report naturally followed the concept of reporting only the good news, not the bad.

Nie Zhenbang could very well understand this. After Zhang Zhongqian finished his report, Nie Zhenbang nodded and said, “Generally speaking, the petition work in Hongjiang Province is quite good. However, some areas still need attention and strengthening.”

At this point, Nie Zhenbang held up three fingers and said, “Firstly, petition cases need to be dealt with effectively. Issues that the people are most concerned about, and where contradictions are more concentrated, such as urban construction, demolitions, and relocations, must be given high priority and concrete implementation as solid support for the province’s economic development. Secondly, enforcing the principle of ‘cadres being the first to respond’. This system is no longer a rarity in some departments domestically, but I believe it can be introduced into the work of petitions. Legitimate petitioners should be warmly received, thoroughly arranged for, and clearly explained to. For problems that concern the masses, assistance should be provided, and relevant departments should actively coordinate to solve these issues together. Thirdly, we should broaden the channels for petitions. In today’s rapidly developing society, besides traditional petitions, we need to adapt to the times and accelerate the development of online petitions. We need to set up a website for the Bureau of Letters and Calls, publish an email address, and allow the people to express their demands via the internet. Also, a provincial hotline for petitions needs to be established. From various angles, we should broaden access to speech and improve petition work, urging and assisting the province’s economic construction and development.”

These suggestions and requirements were very pertinent, fully reflecting Nie Zhenbang’s capabilities and level, inspiring a genuine respect among the people in the Bureau of Letters and Calls.

After a pause, Nie Zhenbang changed his tone and continued, “Additionally, in the work of petitions, there are some areas that urgently need to be strengthened. Currently, in the work of petitions, there still exist some undesirable phenomena. When dealing with petitions involving local party and government officials, even high-ranking leaders, most people tend to hesitate, and in most cases, they just send the petitions back to be handled locally. This is not a good practice.”

At this moment, the atmosphere in the meeting room grew tense. Secretary Nie’s words were sharp, directly pointing out one of the main problems within the current work of petitions.

The position of the petition department is awkward; without the power of investigation, what they can do, what they are capable of doing, is often limited to coordination. Compared to the local strongmen, the petition department is nothing but a clean but powerless office, easily ignored. Moreover, most local party and government leaders have connections and backgrounds, which is a difficulty in petition work. Encountering such cases, most are sent back to the local level to be handled. If the complaints were anonymous, it might be fine, but if they were made with real names, the complainants often suffer retaliation and even dire consequences.

Now, Nie Zhenbang raising this point in such a context was worthy of deep contemplation. Saying it’s not good, he may mean that, in the future, when encountering such issues, the petitions department has to be responsible for following through or transferring them to the Provincial Discipline Inspection Commission or something of that sort. In short, petitions cannot be sent back to the local level as before.

Considering Nie Zhenbang’s earlier arrangements at the temporary standing committee meeting, to strengthen ideological education and learning among party and government leaders throughout the province, as well as enhancing anti-corruption construction–with the Discipline Inspection Commission, the Provincial Supervision Department, and other units needing to earnestly implement these measures–when combined, the implications became quite different.

Zhang Zhongqian’s face showed some uncertainty. Listening to the words and the tone, Secretary Nie seemed to be hinting that the petition department needs to strengthen its connection with the Provincial Discipline Inspection Commission, the Provincial Supervision Department, and other relevant departments.

But this was something that could offend people. As a mere head of the Bureau of Letters and Calls, could he really withstand it?

(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, welcome to NovelFire.net to cast your votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.)

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