What kind of people should be selected and how to select them have always been major issues of serious concern for the CPC. Comrade Mao Zedong pointed out that cadres are a decisive factor once the political line has been determined. Comrade Deng Xiaoping said explicitly that after the political line is determined, it is people who are to carry it out. What kind of people should be chosen to carry it out? Results of the work will vary with people who agree to the Party's political line, who do not agree to it, or who hold to the middle of the road. Under the new historical conditions, the third generation of the Party's leading collective has inherited and developed the Marxist concept of appointing people advocated by revolutionaries of the older generation, and have advanced the important idea of fostering a contingent of high-caliber cadres in line with the requirements of the "Three Represents." Comrade Jiang Zemin went out of his way to stress that a Marxist political party must have not only a correct ideological and political line, but also a correct organizational line. The key is to select and appoint the right people. He said explicitly that institutional innovation must be adhered to in the work of selecting and appointing cadres, and a scientific system of selecting and appointing people must be used to ensure the correct selections and appointments. The Regulations, revised and issued on the basis of the Interim Regulations on the Work of Selecting and Appointing Leading Party and Government Cadres, have scientifically summed up the Party's rich practical experience in personnel work over the years, especially since the reform and opening-up policies were introduced two decades ago, earnestly put into practice the scientific ideas of the three generations of leading collectives of the Party on the appointment of people, thus marking another solid step forward in the course of establishing sound and scientific mechanisms for the selection and appointment and the supervision and administration of cadres.

The basic spirit of the Regulations, as the basic regulations for the selection and appointment of leading Party and government cadres, is to use Marxism-Leninism, Mao Zedong Thought, Deng Xiaoping Theory and the important concept of the "Three Represents" as the guide, adhere to the Party's principles concerning cadre work, and use scientific systems, democratic methods, meticulous procedures and strict discipline to select and appoint leading Party and government cadres with both political integrity and professional competence, who earnestly act according to the important concept of the "Three Represents."

The salient features of the Regulations are: persistence in progressing with the times, full embodiment of the important concept of the "Three Represents;" fulfillment of the new requirements of the Party Central Committee on the work of selecting and appointing cadres; and incorporation of the new fruits of the reform of the personnel system. The Regulations emphasize expanding democracy and formulate new measures for improving the organizational system of democratic centralism and guaranteeing the people's rights to be informed, participate, select and supervise in the selection and appointment of cadres. The Regulations also stress improving procedures and striving for new progress in making the work of cadre selection and appointment scientific and standardized; encourage institutional innovation and secure new breakthroughs in helping outstanding people to come forward and in clearing channels to enable cadres to accept higher or lower positions with ease of mind; adhere to effective supervision and contain new rules for introducing a scientific and effective mechanism of supervision and administration.

It is an important and urgent task for the whole Party, especially the Party committees (leading Party members' groups) at all levels and their organization (personnel) departments to conscientiously study and implement the Regulations, and further raise the level of leading Party and government leaders in selecting and appointing cadres. To do a good job in implementing the Regulations, they must, first of all, study them well. It is essential to combine theory with practice, and integrate their study of the Regulations with the study and implementation of the important concept of the "Three Represents," General Secretary Jiang Zemin's important speech made at the ceremony marking the completion of an advanced course for cadres at the provincial and ministerial level at the Central Party School on May 31, 2002, and the spirit of the Sixth Plenary Session of the 15th Party Central Committee. It is also essential to integrate the study of the Regulations with the further reform of the personnel system, with the establishment of sound and scientific mechanisms for the selection and appointment and the supervision and administration of cadres, and with the strengthening of the buildup of leading bodies and the solution of the prominent problems in the work of cadre selection and appointment  all for the purpose of putting what they have learned into practice. Party committees (leading Party members' groups) at all levels should make plans for the study in their respective localities and departments. The chief leading comrades should take the lead in the study and personally take charge of it. Organization (personnel) departments should take specific measures to carry out the plans under the guidance of the Party committees (leading Party members' groups). It is essential for leading cadres at all levels to be familiar with the Regulations, for cadres of the organization (personnel) departments to be well versed in the Regulations and for the cadres and the general public to get to know the Regulations through earnest study. It is important to give wide publicity to the Regulations, so as to enable both the cadres and the general public to have a real command of them and create a good social ethos favorable to the improvement of the work of selecting and appointing cadres and to the effective prevention and rectification of unhealthy practices in this respect.

Implementation of the Regulations hinges on Party committees (leading Party members' groups) at all levels, and on the chief leading cadres. Party committees (leading Party members' groups) and leading cadres at all levels must enhance their sense of politics, sense of organization, and sense of law and discipline, and guarantee the smooth implementation of the Regulations by showing their strong Party spirit and good work style. On the issue of appointing people, they should adhere to the principle of Party spirit and the criteria for cadres, be impartial and honest, and appoint people on their merits, not by favoritism. They should adhere to the system of democratic centralism, persist in making decisions on the use of cadres through collective discussions, and prohibit the practice of letting only one or a few persons have the final say. They should strictly follow the set procedure, and not act against it, nor do whatever they wish. They should voluntarily accept supervision by the Party organization and the general public, and firmly resist and rectify unhealthy practices in personnel affairs. They must not seek to cultivate worldly wisdom and vulgar interpersonal relationships and give opportunities for ill-intentioned and official title-crazy people to exploit to their advantage. Organization (personnel) departments at all levels should give full play to their functional roles, be bold in adhering to principles, stick to the rules and regulations in handling matters, strictly follow procedures and consciously resist interference of unhealthy practices from all quarters. In this way, they will not waver in adhering to the principles guiding the selection and appointment of cadres, nor deviate from the standards in applying the criteria for cadre selection and appointment, nor make flexible changes in following the procedure, nor relax their efforts in adhering to the disciplinary rules governing cadre selection and appointment. It is necessary to make further efforts to supervise and inspect the implementation of the Regulations. Anyone or any act in violation of the Regulations shall be investigated and dealt with strictly once it is discovered.

Looking back on the ups and downs of the past and today, we can say that success or failure, gain or loss hinge on the use of personnel. As long as we adhere to the Regulations unswervingly in selecting and appointing cadres, we will be able to place in leading posts of all levels those outstanding cadres who put the important concept of the "Three Represents" into action in an exemplary way, have both political integrity and professional competence, have made outstanding achievements in their political careers, and are publicly acknowledged to be worthy of their positions. That way, we can bring up a contingent of high-caliber leading cadres who can take on heavy responsibilities and stand the test of any storm, and open up a new prospect for vigorous cadre work with large numbers of talented people coming to the fore.