Comrade Shaoqi [2]:
Please take a look at this document. It is about putting politics first.
Mao Zedong
February 25
I agree.

[1] On January 24, 1966, Wang Renzhong, Second Secretary of the Central-South Bureau of
the CPC Central Committee and First Secretary of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee,
spoke at a meeting of the Hubei Provincial Party Committee Standing Committee, pointing
out that many rural areas now prioritize work points over politics; many factories and
commercial units prioritize bonuses, which are essentially material incentives. These
systems, which are inconsistent with Mao Zedong Thought and production development,
can be changed. Factories can add bonuses to wages, as long as they do not exceed the total
wage fund. There are two principles: one is not to increase state expenditure, and the other
is that workers' actual income does not decrease. From now on, we will only provide
spiritual encouragement, not material incentives. The basic approach in rural areas is to
implement a base point system, with base points assessed based on individual performance.
We oppose pedantic philosophy and rely primarily on political leadership to mobilize the
enthusiasm of the masses. This political leadership must be accompanied by a series of
measures; otherwise, the problem cannot be solved. This first paragraph was written on the
printed manuscript of Wang Renzhong's speech. On April 10th, the Central Committee of the
Communist Party of China forwarded Wang Renzhong's speech with a comment, pointing
out: "Comrade Renzhong's speech emphasizes the importance of politics in command, and
his opinions are very good. This is a serious issue. Some of the current bonus systems, etc.,
are not in line with the spirit of politics in command. We mobilize the enthusiasm of the
broad masses of the people not through material rewards other than wages or work points,
but through Mao Zedong Thought, through the importance of politics in command, through
the general line of building socialism more quickly, better, and more economically—in short,



through the continuous improvement of people's political awareness. However,
fundamentally resolving this issue involves many aspects and problems, requiring systematic
investigation and research, comprehensive consideration, and gradual resolution through
the mass line. Relevant central ministries and provincial, municipal, and district party
committees are requested to identify a few factories, shops, production teams, and other
units with relatively mature conditions and conduct pilot projects this year. This will allow us
to gain exemplary experience and gradually resolve this issue comprehensively." This second
paragraph was written on the draft of the Central Committee's comment.
[2] Shaoqi is Liu Shaoqi