Ni Zhifu (; May 1933 – 24 April 2013) was a Chinese engineer, inventor, and high-ranking politician. When he worked as a technician in the 1950s, he invented the "Ni Zhifu drill" which earned him a patent and the honour of "

model worker Model worker (, abbreviated as 劳模 or ''láomó'') refers to an exemplary worker who exhibits some or all of the traits appropriate to the ideal of the socialism. Exemplary worker come from various sectors of the Chinese economy, including the i ...

". During the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...

, he was elevated to leadership positions in the municipal government of

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), Chinese postal romanization, alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the Capital city, capital of the China, People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's Li ...

and became an alternate member of the

Politburo A politburo () or political bureau is the executive committee for communist parties. It is present in most former and existing communist states. Names The term "politburo" in English comes from the Russian ''Politbyuro'' (), itself a contracti ...

. He was not close to the

Gang of Four The Gang of Four () was a Maoist political faction composed of four Chinese Communist Party (CCP) officials. They came to prominence during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976) and were later charged with a series of treasonous crimes. The gang ...

, and for that reason his career continued to rise when the Gang fell at the end of the Cultural Revolution in 1976. He became a full member of the Politburo, and served as Deputy

Communist Party Chief A Party Committee Secretary () is the leader of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) organization in a province, city, village, or other administrative unit. In most cases, it is the ''de facto'' highest political office of its area of jurisdictio ...

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Chinese, Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four Direct-administered municipalities of China, direct-administered municipalities of the China, People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the ...

municipality, Chairman of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions, Party Chief of

Tianjin Tianjin (; ; Mandarin: ), alternately romanized as Tientsin (), is a municipality and a coastal metropolis in Northern China on the shore of the Bohai Sea. It is one of the nine national central cities in Mainland China, with a total popu ...

municipality, and Vice Chairman of the National People's Congress.

Early life and invention

Ni Zhifu was born in

in May 1933, and became an apprentice at Shanghai Detai Factory in 1950. In June 1953 he was transferred to the state-owned 618 Factory (also known as Yongding Machinery Plant) in

to work as a fitter. While at the factory he invented the "Ni Zhifu drill", which greatly enhanced the performance and life of

drill A drill is a tool used for making round holes or driving fasteners. It is fitted with a bit, either a drill or driver chuck. Hand-operated types are dramatically decreasing in popularity and cordless battery-powered ones proliferating due to ...

s, and for which he was later granted a patent. He joined the

Communist Party of China The Chinese Communist Party (CCP), officially the Communist Party of China (CPC), is the founding and sole ruling party of the People's Republic of China (PRC). Under the leadership of Mao Zedong, the CCP emerged victorious in the Chinese Ci ...

in 1958 and was named a national "

" in 1959. He was promoted to deputy chief engineer of the 618 Factory in 1965, and later chief engineer.

Cultural Revolution

Ni was a major beneficiary of the

, but unlike many supporters of the

, he owed his rise to prominence to his contribution to production. In 1969, Ni became a member of the 9th Central Committee of the CPC, and in 1973, when a third of the 10th Central Committee were workers and peasants, Ni became an alternate member of the 10th Politburo, one of the four people representing the "masses" in the Politburo. He also served as a party secretary and a deputy director of the Revolutionary Committee of

from 1973 to 1976. He was believed to be closer to the Communist Party bureaucrats than the Gang of Four, and likely tried to check the influence of the Gang in the capital's militia and trade union, which were both under his charge.

Post-Cultural Revolution

When the

fell at the end of the Cultural Revolution in 1976, Ni was sent to Shanghai to take over the city's militia and trade union, which had been under the control of

Wang Hongwen Wang Hongwen (December 1935 – 3 August 1992) was a Chinese labour activist and politician who spent most of his career in Shanghai. He was an important political figure during the Cultural Revolution (1966–1976). He was the youngest member ...

, one of the Four. He was also made the Second Party Secretary ( deputy party chief) of Shanghai. He was then transferred back to Beijing in 1977 to serve as the capital's Second Party Secretary. That same year, Ni, 44, was elected as a full member of the 11th Politburo. At the Ninth Trade Union Congress in 1978, Ni was elected as Chairman of the All-China Federation of Trade Unions (ACFTU), which was seen as a striking change partly because of Ni's relatively young age. He served as the ACFTU chairman for three consecutive terms until 1993, and was re-elected to the 12th Politburo in 1982. From October 1984 to August 1987 he concurrently served as Party Chief of the municipality of

. From 1988 to 1998 he served as a

Vice Chairperson of the National People's Congress The Vice Chairman of the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress () is a political office in China. According to the Constitution of the People's Republic of China, Vice Chairmen are responsible for assisting the Chairman in performin ...

. In 1999 he became President of the Chinese Inventors' Association, which he had cofounded in 1985. He was elected to the

CPC Central Committee The Central Committee of the Chinese Communist Party, officially the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China, is a political body that comprises the top leaders of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). It is currently composed of 205 f ...

for seven consecutive terms, from the 9th CC in 1969 until the end of the 15th CC in 2002. On 24 April 2013, Ni died in Beijing of an illness. He was 79.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ni, Zhifu 1933 births 2013 deaths Chinese Communist Party politicians from Shanghai 20th-century Chinese inventors Members of the 12th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party Political office-holders in Beijing Political office-holders in Shanghai Political office-holders in Tianjin Chinese trade union leaders People of the Cultural Revolution Engineers from Shanghai Members of the 11th Politburo of the Chinese Communist Party Vice Chairpersons of the National People's Congress