Xi’s new book launched in the Philippines at anniversary bash for Duterte’s political party

The CPC and the PDP, reading Xi’s words together in harmony

Rodrigo Duterte infamously joked last week that the Philippines ought to become a province of China. This week, his party demonstrated its willingness to at least take on the important role of Xi Jinping’s local book promoters.

On Tuesday, the PDP-Laban, the Philippines’ ruling party, celebrated its 36th anniversary with a bash that was conspicuously attended by Chinese Ambassador Shao Jianhua and CPC Vice Minister Giu Yeshou, and which also served as the official Philippine launch event for the second volume of Xi’s book, The Governance of China, Volume II.

According to Rappler’s Bea Cupin, Chinese experts were also on hand at the PDP party to bestow upon members a cliffnotes version of Xi’s life and thoughts about government. Meanwhile, Filipino politicians took the stage to urge local officials to learn from the CPC.

Rappler reports that Aquilino Pimentel III, president of the PDP and of the country’s senate, defended the presence of CPC members at the anniversary, calling them “our special guests” and explaining that the event was actually also held to celebrate the first anniversary of a cooperation agreement signed between the PDP and CPC.

Details of this agreement have not been released, but it reportedly includes invitations for PDP members to study at a CPC school in Fujian to learn how China’s ruling party gets things done.

Opponents of Duterte have often critized the tough-taking president of losing his signature swagger when dealing with China and instead assuming the position of Beijing’s lapdog.

In a speech last week, Duterte not only quipped that his country should become a Chinese province, but also argued that the military bases that China was building in the South China Sea were nothing to worry about, as they were targeted at the US and not the Philippines.

“If China were a woman, I’d woo her,” Duterte joked.

Meanwhile, Chinese state media outlets certainly love nothing more than when foreigners take interest in Xi’s tome.

Back in 2015, China’s official Xinhua news agency claimed that The Governance of China had “taken the spotlight” at the London Book Fair, citing words of praise from several important British officials, including former British Deputy Prime Minister Geoffrey Howe, who said that while he had not yet actually got to reading the book, it “sounds absolutely marvelous.”

“We are together,” Howe was (hopefully mis-) quoted as saying. “Let us remain so, and let us love the book”

Of course, no one is a bigger fan of Xi’s book than Mark Zuckerberg. When China’s now-disgraced internet czar Lu Wei paid a visit to the Facebook offices in Menlo Park in 2015, Zuck made sure to show off his own copy of The Governance of China to Lu, adding that he had already bought copies for his colleagues as well.

The Governance of China has purportedly sold more than 13 million copies worldwide. While Xi may soon be granted Mao-like power to remain China’s ruler for life, he still has quite a lot of work to do to catch up to the Great Helmsman as a best-selling author.

Anywhere from 1 to 6.5 billion copies of Mao’s Little Red Book are reported to have been printed during the Cultural Revolution.