Page 13 - SELECTED WORKS OF ZHOU ENLAI Volume II

THE PRESENT FINANCIAL AND ECONOMIC
SITUATION AND RELATIONS BETWEEN
DIFFERENT ASPECTS OF THE ECONOMY OF
NEW CHINA

December 22-23, 1949

Comrades,
Now that the Central People’s Government has been founded,
various ministries and commissions have been holding separate
national conferences, as necessary, to learn about the actual situation
and to formulate principles and plans for their work in the coming
period. Though general principles have already been set forth in the
Common Programme, operational meetings are needed to determine
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specific principles for each field and to have them implemented at
lower levels. Since the various ministries and commissions were formed
only recently, they have not had time to grasp the overall situation,
so they need meetings and on-the-spot investigations to collect in-
formation as well.
Having come to Beijing to attend meetings, in addition to
discussing the work in your own field, you also have the right to
inquire about the country’s overall policies and general principles in
the political, military, economic, cultural and other fields. That is
the only way you will be able to keep the work of your department in
conformity with the general principles and to keep an overall picture
in mind. Otherwise, you will lose your direction and be working in
isolation in the dark. That is not a scientific approach, and it won’t
help to build a new country. The purpose of my talk today is to help
you acquire the habit of considering the overall situation. I am going
to discuss issues of a general nature. It is my opinion that you have

Speech to participants in the national conferences on agriculture, iron and
steel production and civil aviation.