"The last item on the agenda today is to discuss the recommended candidate for deputy head of the security section. In the early stages, our general office conducted a preliminary selection of all qualified candidates. Now, Director Lei, please introduce the qualified candidates."
In the conference room of the Armed Forces Department, the long-awaited personnel issue of the deputy section chief finally entered the final stage, and Xu Damao asked Lei Min to introduce the candidates one by one.
"Okay, as requested by Minister Xu and other leaders, our office conducted a preliminary selection of all qualified candidates. There are a total of 8 qualified comrades in our department. I will now introduce them one by one."
The first is Wang Meng, captain of the first team of the security department. Male, Party member, retired from a military unit in 1958 and served as a security officer; he has been captain of the first team since 1962. Since joining our unit, he has received numerous honors…
As Lei Min introduced the candidates, the resumes of the eight comrades were displayed in front of the three vice ministers, and they all looked very impressive.
"Alright, these eight comrades are all very outstanding. In my opinion, each of them should be promoted to the position of deputy section chief. However, we currently only have one deputy section chief position vacant in our security department, so we can only select the best among the best."
"As for the other comrades, we can recommend them for suitable positions in other departments in the future. Now, Lao Ma and Lao Guo, you two speak up," Xu Damao said.
According to the order of vice ministers, Ma Dabao is ahead of Guo Yongfa, but in such personnel matters, those ranked later usually speak first.
"Then let me speak. Minister Xu is right, they are all excellent, it would be difficult to recommend anyone or not, that's the situation in our reserve force."
But if I had to recommend someone, I would recommend Comrade Wang Xin. This comrade made numerous outstanding contributions in the army, and after joining the unit, he became an elite trainer, making him very suitable for the position of deputy section chief.
"Old Ma, if there weren't so few suitable positions available on our end, I really wouldn't have been willing to recommend you."
After Guo Yongfa finished speaking, he glanced at Ma Dabao, as if to show his power. This time, his reserve team securing three spots in the finals was a victory in itself, significantly boosting his prestige among his subordinates.
"Old Guo, you're wrong. You can keep the best people for yourself; our security department can't handle them."
To be honest, the two leaders believe that this time, the deputy head of the security department should be promoted, both according to tradition and based on merit.
"Because of this matter, many comrades in our security section have expressed their opinions, believing that the Armed Forces Department is discriminating against our section. Therefore, I hope the leaders will take this sentiment seriously." Ma Dabao retorted to Guo Yongfa, and then brought up again that the candidate for section chief should be selected from within the security section.
"Old Ma, don't bring this up again. Since our department has made a decision, everyone must obey. If anyone still has objections, tell them to come and find me."
"Now let's talk about your recommendations. If you don't have any, then forget it," Xu Damao said.
"If I had to recommend one, I would still recommend Mei Jinpeng, the captain of Team Three. I've already explained why, so I won't repeat it." Ma Dabao said very little this time.
Since everyone mentioned the departments they were in charge of or under their supervision, Xu Damao, without any surprises, recommended Tang Yiyang, a young man from the militia battalion.
Logically speaking, this young man shouldn't have been eligible to compete, but unfortunately, most of the militia members were part-time and didn't meet the eligibility requirements. In the end, for the sake of fairness, Xu Damao made a special exception and included Tang Yiyang on the list.
However, since the conditions were indeed not quite right, being on the list was a valuable experience, so Xu Damao didn't say much.
After the three leaders finished speaking, Lei Min realized that there had been no prior communication or failed communication between them regarding these three opinions.
In reality, Xu Damao didn't communicate at all; he simply wanted this situation to occur. If he had communicated with Guo Yongfa and exchanged benefits, Xu Damao could have easily secured Guo's vote.
Ma Dabao had spoken to Guo Yongfa beforehand, but Guo had several people watching him closely, so it was impossible for him to hang out with Ma Dabao at this time.
"Can we all reach a consensus?" Xu Damao asked.
Guo Yongfa looked at Xu Damao, his eyes seeming to say, "If you beg me, I'll grant your request." But Xu Damao glanced at him, and then nothing more.
"If all else fails, submit all three lists together and let the Political Department decide," Ma Dabao said.
He figured that if he couldn't get any advantage here, he could try his luck with the political department. To be honest, Ma Dabao hadn't been wasting his years there; he knew quite a few people there, and many of them were very close.
"No way," Xu Damao and Guo Yongfa both objected.
"Old Guo, you go first," Xu Damao said.
“If we submit three lists, the initiative will go to the political department, and then what’s the point of our discussion? Besides, are you trying to make sure outsiders don’t know that there’s disunity within our armed forces department?” Guo Yongfa said.
"Old Guo has a strong sense of the big picture. He's right, it's normal for us to have internal disagreements and opinions, but we must unite when facing external challenges."
"Since we have eight people to choose from, let's have an internal competition. Let's put them to the test and see who's the best, so they can accept their defeat wholeheartedly," Xu Damao suddenly said.
"How will the competition be conducted?" Ma Dabao asked warily, seemingly sensing that Xu Damao was setting a trap.
"That's simple. We'll have a written test and a practical test. Lei Min will set the questions for the written test, mainly to see how well they grasp the leader's ideology. Those who don't pass must be eliminated from this competition."
If they pass, then we'll give them a practical security test. Hmm, since it's a test, you, Lao Ma, will be in charge of making the arrangements. By the way, you can't set the questions yourself; your security department should recuse itself.
For this kind of practical test, you should contact the branch office and ask them to provide a question and examiners; they will then score the test.
Xu Damao borrowed the procedures for publicly selecting leading cadres from later generations. He even entrusted the task of contacting the branch office to Ma Dabao to put his mind at ease.
“This method is good; it has both theory and practice, and it should be able to attract suitable talent,” Ma Dabao immediately agreed.
Although the written test was a bit of a hassle for the roughnecks, who among those who made the list wasn't a roughneck? The practical tests that followed, centered around security work, were practically tailor-made for everyone in the security department. What's more, Xu Damao had entrusted him with finding the examiners.
"Minister Xu, is this really necessary?" Guo Yongfa asked, a bit troubled.
If he had known this would be the outcome, he would have been better off agreeing to Ma Dabao's terms from the start; at least that would have given him some security. But now, it's clear that their people have absolutely no chance of winning.
"If you're worried about the hassle, then your people can just quit. Let me tell you, only those who pass the final test can be considered truly suitable talents."
If our cadre selection process is successful, it can be promoted within our armed forces department, and even throughout the entire steel rolling mill.
"Comrades, back then we could be considered heroes of the steel rolling mill!" Xu Damao said excitedly.
Seeing Xu Damao's behavior, Ma Dabao finally felt relieved. It seemed that Xu Damao was trying to gain the leader's approval through a show.
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