The fifth Central Environmental Protection Inspection Team stationed in Fujian Province a couple of days ago upon the approval of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, in a bid to launch environmental inspection there, as part of the efforts to implement the guidelines of the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping on promoting ecological progress and protecting the environment, and the major decisions and deployments of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council. The inspection team held a mobilization meeting in Fuzhou, the capital city of Fujian Province in East China on Apr. 24. The team leader Jia Zhibang and deputy team leader Zhai Qing delivered remarks on doing well in the inspection. Secretary of the CPC Fujian provincial committee You Quan delivered a mobilization speech. The meeting was chaired by Yu Weiguo, Governor of the provincial government.
Jia Zhibang pointed out that the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core has taken all factors into consideration while implementing the overall plan for promoting economic, political, social, cultural and ecological progresses and balanced and promoted the “four-pronged comprehensive strategy”; it has put ecological development and environmental protection on a more important, strategic position. The environmental protection inspection is one of the major institutional arrangements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council for promoting ecological progress and protecting the environment. General Secretary Xi Jinping highly valued it and required taking it as a cutting point to promote ecological progress, highlighting the equal responsibility of the Party and the government for environmental protection, and tightening the implementation of “one position with two responsibilities” system. With respect to the pilot inspection in Hebei Province, General Secretary Xi made important instructions and required adhering to the problem-oriented principle, putting great efforts in revealing problems, being brave to take a serious attitude, paying close attention to this task, and making new headways with the ecological progress. In December 2016, Xi made important instructions once again on promoting ecological progress and required intensifying the environmental inspection, seriously investigating and punishing disciplinary and legal violations, making strenuous efforts to address pressing ecological problems, and enabling the public to perceive the improving ecological environment.
Jia Zhibang stressed that the inspection team stationed in Fujian to, first and foremost, check whether the provincial Party committee and provincial government have well implemented the national decisions and deployments for environmental protection, solved pressing environmental problems, and taken the main responsibility for protecting the environment in the province. The team will adhere to the problem-oriented principle, monitor closely the pressing environmental problems that have raised high attention of the central authorities, are strongly complained by the public, and have bad social ramifications, as well as how they are settled; inspect the areas and watersheds that have experienced deteriorating environmental quality and how they have been treated; check whether immediate actions have been taken to rectify the living environment problems reported by the people; check if there is any nonfeasance or misconduct by the local Party committee and relevant government departments; and check the performances of local Party committees and governments in sharing the responsibility for protecting the environment, how the “one position with two responsibilities” system has been implemented, and how the liabilities are accounted for. The party committees and governments at all levels in Fujian should work closely around the overall plan for promoting economic, political, social, cultural, and ecological progresses and the “four-pronged comprehensive strategy”, firmly embrace the “four kinds of awareness”, implement the new development concepts, and make sure the major decisions and deployments of the central authorities to take root and yield substantial effects.
In response, You Quan said the CPC Central Committee with Comrade Xi Jinping at the core has attached great importance to promoting ecological progress and protecting the environment, taken all factors into consideration to implement the overall plan for promoting the economic, political, social, cultural, and ecological progresses, and made a raft of top designs, institutional arrangements, decisions and deployments in this regard. The environmental inspection is of vital significance to fulfilling the environmental protection responsibilities as the main players and comprehensively uplifting the ecological development level. The central government adopted the decision to establish the first national ecological civilization pilot area in Fujian, which demonstrated its earnest aspirations towards Fujian. Therefore, the local party committees, governments, and relevant departments at all levels should resolutely implement the guidelines of the important instructions of General Secretary Xi Jinping and the decisions and deployments of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, earnestly raise the “four awareness”, and with high political awareness, build a clean province through the environmental inspection which helps locate the problems more accurately, implement the responsibilities more substantially, and achieve better performances at work. He required that the departments at all levels collaborate closely with the inspection team, adhere to the principle of seeking truth from facts, talk about the achievements without exaggeration and the problems without shunning, transmit the environmental protection pressure down to lower levels, and enable the party committees and the governments to be equally responsible for the environmental protection and to implement the “one position with two responsibilities” system. For the assignments given by the inspection team, they should follow the problem-oriented principle, take immediate actions, and make sure all problems are handled. Moreover, they should draw inferences about other cases from one instance, find out the root causes, further improve the long-term mechanism for eco-environmental protection, and make strenuous efforts to uplift the eco-environmental protection level.
At the meeting, Zhai Qing proposed requirements for cooperating well with the inspection team, overseeing the rectifications, sharing the information, and providing adequate conditions for the inspection. Members of the inspection team, officials concerned with the National Office of Environmental Protection Inspection, and leadership of the provincial Party committee and provincial government attended the meeting. Leading officials of the provincial people’s congress and local political advisory committees, leading officials of the relevant departments under the provincial Party committee and government, as well as the leadership of municipal Party committee and municipal government of the provincial capital city observed the meeting. The leading officials of the Party committees and governments of other prefectural cities (counties directly under the provincial government), as well as the persons-in-charge of relevant departments observed the meeting via video teleconference.
The fifth Central Environmental Protection Inspection Team is scheduled to be stationed in Fujian for about one month from Apr. 24 to May 24. The telephone is 0591-87851299. The postal address is Mailbox #389, Fuzhou Municipality. The inspection team will take phone calls between 08:00 and 20:00. According to the requirements of the CPC Central Committee and the State Council, and the terms of reference of the inspection team, the team will accept and process complaints by letter and by telephone in respect of environmental protection in Fujian. Other problems falling out of the purview of the team will be transferred to the regions, organizations and departments concerned.
