Around 80 percent of Party members and officials in Tianjin have moved their Party titles ahead of their government titles on their business cards; a move observers believe was done to stress officials' duty within the Party.Â
Â
"The change reflects that the officials' political consciousness and sense of responsibility have been strengthened," an official with the Communist Party of China (CPC) Tianjin Committee said.Â
Â
The business card update came after Tianjin officials studied a series of speeches about the responsibilities of Party members by President Xi Jinping and Secretary of the Central Commission for Discipline Inspection Wang Qishan starting in 2014. Â
Â
The change on the business cards stressed the CPC's leading role in governance. Officials are Party members first and then take their administrative duties as a part of that responsibility, said Zhuang Deshui, deputy director at the Research Centre for Government Integrity Building at Peking University.Â
Â
"Tianjin's move is necessary to help officials realize the Party spirit and their duties within the Party," Zhuang said, adding that it is important to remind Party members of such ideas under the challenges of diversified thoughts in China.Â
Â
He added that the loss of Party spirit is the root cause of corruption. Â