Shandong Linqing "rubbing against Zhang Xuefeng's popularity"? The deputy mayor responded in person
Recently, Linqing, located in Liaocheng, Shandong, a historical and cultural city that was once known as "bustling over two capitals" and "prosperous Jiaqi County," has attracted widespread attention due to the appointment of internet celebrity "postgraduate entrance exam teacher" Zhang Xuefeng as the investment ambassador.
Many netizens have left comments saying that this move by Linqing City completely breaks their previous impression of being cautious and conservative in some northern cities, and some even commented that this approach is very "southern". Another netizen believes that Linqing City is riding on Zhang Xuefeng's popularity by doing so.
According to a poster news report on the public website, "We didn't expect such a large amount of attention and immediate results to be generated in such a short period of time. This was unexpected, but it is also something we are willing to see, which proves that our choice is correct." Recently, Wang Hong, Deputy Mayor of Linqing Municipal People's Government, said in an interview.
Wang Hong is the Deputy Mayor in charge of investment promotion in Linqing City, and participated in the entire process of appointing Zhang Xuefeng as the investment ambassador. According to him, Linqing City's attention to Zhang Xuefeng was a very accidental opportunity.
Last year, Zhang Xuefeng said in a live broadcast that he had ancestral roots in Linqing, Shandong. "After learning this news, we contacted Teacher Zhang Xuefeng through various means. Recently, we finally made substantial contact with him, explaining our ideas. He is also very willing to make some contributions to his hometown," said Wang Hong.
From September 16th to 17th, Liu Peiguo, Deputy Mayor of Liaocheng City and Secretary of the Linqing Municipal Party Committee, led a team to Suzhou City to carry out investment promotion activities. During the visit, he inspected Suzhou Fengxue Weilai Education Technology Co., Ltd., held discussions with the founder of Fengxue Weilai, Zhang Xuefeng, and others, and appointed Zhang Xuefeng as the Linqing City Investment Ambassador.
Liu Peiguo, Deputy Mayor of Liaocheng City and Secretary of the Linqing Municipal Party Committee, led a team to visit and inspect Suzhou Fengxue Weilai Education Technology Co., Ltd. It is understood that Zhang Xuefeng is the 19th investment ambassador appointed by Linqing City in the past two years. At this point, it is necessary to mention the "Investment Ambassador" system in Linqing City.
In April 2021, Linqing City issued the "Management Measures for the Appointment of Inviting Business Ambassadors in Linqing City", which determined the basic conditions, main responsibilities, and benefits of attracting business ambassadors. The aim is to further enhance the professionalism and socialization level of "double recruitment and double attraction" in Linqing City, leverage the channel resource advantages of well-known enterprises, celebrities, and experts, and promote high-quality double recruitment and double attraction.
As of now, Linqing City has hired 19 successful overseas residents from Linqing as its investment ambassadors, distributed in different regions such as Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Hangzhou.
This time, Linqing City has hired an internet celebrity as the government's investment ambassador, and many netizens have left messages on social media, impressed by the city.
"The Liaocheng Municipal Party Committee and Government have put forward the requirements of 'three proposals and three dares' for our work, including daring to venture, daring to work, and daring to compete. In the process of attracting investment, we have also found that compared with the southern Jiangsu, Zhejiang, and Shanghai regions, the difference is not only in economic output, but also in the way government officials think. Wang Hong believes that some government departments in the southern region have done a good job in leveraging and applying resources of online celebrities and social celebrities.".
"As long as it is conducive to local economic development, expanding urban propaganda, and promoting industrial introduction, everything can be explored and tried without violating the bottom line," said Wang Hong.
Of course, Linqing also had certain principles in the selection process of investment ambassadors. Wang Hong stated that Zhang Xuefeng complied with the policies and principles of Linqing in all aspects. "He is a representative of the People's Congress of Jiangsu Province, a successful entrepreneur who has carried out many charitable activities. He has a high social awareness and great personal influence, and his personal image and social evaluation are also very good, fully meeting the basic requirements of the Linqing City Investment Ambassador. Moreover, our investment ambassador happens to lack such a highly influential online celebrity."
The main leaders of Linqing City had discussions and exchanges with Zhang Xuefeng. From media reports, it can be seen that as an internet celebrity, although Zhang Xuefeng is well-known, there are also some controversies. Choosing an internet celebrity as an investment ambassador carries both risks and benefits. How does the local community view potential risks?
"If we are afraid of encountering problems in the selection of investment ambassadors and dare not choose them, this work cannot continue. As a county-level city in Shandong, our advantages in the investment process are not obvious. Especially in Linqing, whether it is geographical or industrial advantages, we cannot compare with developed regions in the south. We do not have obvious investment advantages. In the work of overcoming difficulties, we must dare to take risks, try, and be the first." Wang Hong said that any online celebrity has different voices, and we should see the mainstream voice. We cannot be afraid of taking responsibility and not take steps because there are individual noises.
Wang Hong said that Linqing is not afraid of negative voices appearing online. "Every job requires someone to dare to take risks and try. Since it is a typical practice and example that has already been successful in economically developed areas in the south, why not borrow it? As long as it is for work and economic and social development, I think it is not wrong."
He also paid attention to online doubts about the traffic and popularity of Linqing City's ride on Zhang Xuefeng. "Those who are like-minded should not distance themselves from the mountains and seas. Teacher Zhang, whose ancestral home is Linqing, wants to do something for the people of Linqing. We want to use his resources to promote Linqing, and we are willing to do so. We can accept online evaluations because everything we do is for the development of our hometown's economy and society, to promote Linqing's good urban image and brand."
Public reports show that since the beginning of this year, the top leaders of the party and government in Linqing have adhered to the principle of "attracting investment first" and actively carried out "going out and inviting in" investment promotion activities. They have led teams to carry out investment promotion activities in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen, Hangzhou, Nanjing, Suzhou, Wuhan and other places multiple times. At the mobilization conference for investment promotion in Linqing City held in March, Liu Peiguo pointed out that investment promotion is the quickest, most realistic, and most effective way to promote project construction, growth, and employment.
