Alwaght- China’s ruling Communist Party on Sunday proposed removing a constitutional clause that limits presidential service to two consecutive terms, potentially allowing the incumbent president Xi Jinping to stay in office indefinitely.
If approved, the move lays the groundwork for Mr Xi to rule as president beyond 2023.
"The Communist party of China central committee proposed to remove the expression that the president and vice-president of the People’s Republic of China‘shall serve no more than two consecutive terms’ from the country’s constitution,” State-run Xinhua news agency reported, adding “The proposal was made public Sunday ".
Mr Xi, 64, is currently required by the country’s constitution to step down as president after two five-year terms. Nearing the end of his first term, he will be formally elected to a second at the annual meeting of China’s largely rubber-stamp parliament opening on 5 March.
The Central Committee also proposed inserting his official ideological framework – the “Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era” – into the constitution, Xinhua said in a separate report. It is already enshrined in the arguably more important Communist Party constitution.
Constitutional reform needs to be approved by parliament, which is stacked with members chosen for their loyalty to the Party, meaning the reform will not be blocked.
