This former Xi Jinping chief of staff saw his image tarnished last year after his chaotic management of a two-month confinement in Shanghai.
He was the only candidate running. Li Qiang, considered one of President Xi Jinping’s closest trusted men, was appointed as the new Chinese Prime Minister on Saturday March 11 in Beijing. In a vote of deputies gathered at the People’s Palace, this former Communist Party official in Shanghai obtained 2,936 votes for, three against and eight abstentions. At 63, he succeeds Li Keqiang, in office since 2013.
Li Qiang, who had been propelled to the rank of number two in the Communist Party (CCP) in October, has no experience at the central government level, unlike almost all former prime ministers. The Chinese Premier heads the State Council. Its function is traditionally associated with the day-to-day management of the country and the conduct of macroeconomic policy.
Li Qiang has, however, had a rich career in local government, taking on important leadership roles in the wealthy eastern coastal provinces of Zhejiang and Jiangsu. Li Qiang was Xi Jinping’s chief of staff when he was party leader in Zhejiang between 2004 and 2007.
Shanghai Lockdown Man
His promotions, which have been rapid since, reflect the high level of confidence placed in him by the Chinese number one. Saturday at the People’s Palace in Beijing, Xi Jinping and Li Qiang appeared accomplices at the time of the vote, exchanging pleasantries with a smile.
The likelihood of Li Qiang getting such a high job, however, seemed in jeopardy after his chaotic handling of a two-month lockdown in Shanghai last year, during which the city’s 25 million people struggled with food supplies. food and essential medical care. “If there was proof (showing) that loyalty trumps meritocracy in Xi Jinping’s China, Li Qiang’s promotion is one”says Richard McGregor, a researcher at the Lowy Institute in Sydney, Australia.
Li Qiang takes office at a time when the world’s second-largest economy is facing a sharp slowdown, weakened by nearly three years of an inflexible so-called “zero Covid” policy. For 2023, the government has set itself a GDP growth target of “around 5%”, one of the lowest in decades. Outgoing Prime Minister Li Keqiang, an economist by training, had seen his plans for economic reform hampered by the growing authority of Xi Jinping.