AT the opening day of the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China, PRC Premier Wen Jiabao told the delegates to the once-a-decade congress that there were three tasks the country’s leaders must focus on in the next five years.

These are to (1) increase the people’s income, (2) to fight corruption and (3) to enhance the building of the Communist Party.

He had joined a panel discussion of the Tianjin delegation to the congress and there he said that because the international financial crisis was affecting China’s economic growth, and it would go on for a few more years, it was important to deal with the economy effectively.

He said China must maintain a steady and relatively fast economic growth, push forward reform and economic restructuring. These are needed to avoid instable, imbalanced, uncoordinated and unsustainable economic development.

He said political structural reform in China must also be advanced at the same time. He said that would improve democracy in the country, safeguard social justice and ensure fairness, protect the freedom and equal rights of the people. These would have to be done if the people are expected to bring their initiative and creativity into full play.

“In the next five years or beyond, people are very much concerned about some issues that need our special attention,” he said.

First, efforts must be made to increase the income of urban and rural residents, improve the social security system, further narrow urban-rural and regional disparities and address unfairness in income distribution.

Second, priority must be given to the anti-corruption combat because it is a matter of life or death to the Party and the country. To this end, institutional building should be strengthened to uproot graft and promote officials’ integrity and clean government.

Third, it is the Party that shoulders the greatest responsibility for China’s future. So “we should make special efforts to consolidate and improve the Party’s leadership, enhance democracy, optimize the legal system and practice the rule of law.”

“China faces quite a lot of problems, especially the arduous task in reform and development. But I think the three aspects mentioned above are of great significance and pressing,” Wen said.

Immediate tasks facing the incumbent government is to stabilize the Chinese economy and constitute reform plans on income distribution and compensation for expropriated rural collective lands, Premier Wen said.

The Chinese Prime Minister’s speech was reported to the world by Xinhua, the state news agency, and the foreign wire services.

A new batch of members of the Communist Party’s Central Committee Politburo will be announced before the end of the congress on Thursday.

They will be the ones on whose shoulders the work of carrying out these “focal tasks” will be laid.

We hope incoming CCP top leader of the Party Xi Jin ping, who would then become president of the People’s Republic, and his fellow highest leaders of China follow PM Wen’s definition of China’s most pressing problems and prioritize them.

The success of China’s economy and that country’s political stability are vital to the health and growth of the global economy.