Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said Tuesday the supreme criterion for a public servant is whether the people are satisfied or not with his/her performance, and people's satisfaction is the supreme award.

Wen made the remark at a meeting with representatives of 48 government staffers and 31 government institutions that have been awarded the titles of "People-Satisfied Public Servants" and "People-Satisfied Public Servant Collectives" by the central authorities.

It is now a crucial period for China's reform and opening drive and efforts to build a relatively affluent society in an all-roundway, Wen said.

The improvement of the Party's ruling abilities and the government's level of serving the people depends on the improvement of the quality of Party members and government staffers, he noted.

The most important thing for public servants is to give top priority to the interests of the people, Wen stressed.

Also present at the meeting were Vice President Zeng Qinghong and some other senior Party and government officials.

The selection of the awardees was jointly sponsored by the Organization Department and the Publicity Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, the Central Office on Cultural and Ethic Progress and the Ministry of Personnel.

(Xinhua News Agency Sepetember 1, 2004)