Hello again TSP! I'm back for another run at Prime Minister.

It's been nearly two years now since I held political office. With our leadership often seeming dominated by the same names I hope to be a fresh face in our Cabinet, bringing new perspectives and ideas to our regional leadership.

A HISTORY OF SERVICE
My greatest asset is my experience in our region. I have been a part of The South Pacific for nearly five years, and in that time I've become involved with nearly every part of TSP in some form. I've served on the Cabinet in three times in different roles over the years; serving as Minster of Regional Affairs, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Chair of the Assembly (back when that was a Cabinet role). I've worked with the Ministry of Regional Affairs for a long time, assisting in every type of project from festivals to broadcasting to historical research. In the past I have served as an ambassador for TSP, as part of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. I was a long-time member of the South Pacific Special Forces before I had to retire. I've been Justice four times and Chair of the Assembly twice. I am currently a member of the Council on Regional Security, which I have served on for over two years, and a member of the Legislator Committee.

All of that is to say that over my years in TSP I have worked in nearly every part of our government in some form. I've learned many of the ins and outs of each ministry, I know first-hand how every branch works. I'm by no means the best at most of those jobs, but what my experience has taught me what the branches of our region need to succeed and grow. As Prime Minister I would bring this knowledge and experience to our leadership.

A FOCUS ON COMMUNICATION
A focal point of my campaign is that of communication, in all of its forms. I've campaigned on this issue before, and I feel it is as relevant of an issue as ever. These issues can come in many forms: within the cabinet, between the cabinet and region, and even the systems we use the communicate.

AN ORDER TO CABINET: For all the work the ministries have done, they have not been without the internal issues of communication and organization between them. We've seen these take different forms, such as the recent issues with different ministries running festivals instead of Regional Affairs. As Prime Minister my duty is to prevent internal communication issues. Under my leadership I will ensure all ministers are aware of any projects that may affect each other. I aim to avoid the issues of Ministers "stepping on each other's toes", and ensure these joint-ministry projects are properly handled by all the sides involved. Be it a matter of festivals, foreign policy goals, or military plans, these jurisdictional conflicts should never happen.

A CALL FOR TRANSPARENCY: When I first ran for Prime Minister two years ago I said that a call to improve communication and transparency already bordered on cliche. Two years later it is still the case, but efforts to implement these measures have continually failed. It's time we finally see these calls for transparency implemented. If elected I intend to see these become properly implemented. It's about more than any single policy. It's about keeping the region in the loop about plans throughout the term, it's about the whole cabinet being available to answer questions about what's happening, it's about having relevant transparency laws that keep all cabinets - past, present, and future - accountable to the region. While not every ministry can put together something on the scale of the SPSF reports, it is important that what has been done and what is being planned is available to the region where possible. It was never clear what Foreign Affairs was doing this term, and even as a member of Regional Affairs festivals seemed to pop up out of nowhere. Even our sunshine laws have suffered on communication lately; with the growing usage of Discord, the release of information has suffered. I hope to address these problems during my term, even if it is just ensuring all decisions have a clear record made on the forum.

A TRINITY OF CHATS: Our region is made up of three fundamental communication systems: the RMB, the Forums, and the Discord server. All three platforms are integral to our community, and none can truly exist without the others. Though the forms they take may change (Discord replacing IRC, one forum replacing another), this triad of systems is core to our region. Each have their strengths and weaknesses, but each has their core purpose. It is important to maintain this balance, and not neglect any one as a region. We've seen struggles with this before: the disconnect between the RMB and the forum/Discord being the most prominent, but also between Discord and the forums. The RMB is a critical source of activity for the other two. Discord has its limitations, and some things are better suited for the forums.

A STAND AGAINST TOXICITY
As a region we have a tendency to act a little rashly to situations. One need only look at our years of political crises as proof. Be it at home or abroad, we have a history of violent reactions to conflicts. There is nothing wrong with taking a stand, and when it is right we should make that stand. But the violence and toxicity that has long plagued our regional culture only hurts each other and our reputation. Our government should set an example on toxicity, and as Prime Minister I intend to make it so. When it comes to foreign interactions we should never engage in flaming and antagonism, no matter who started it. Within the region we should seek to prevent toxicity, no matter if it's from the Assembly or in our regional chats. I hope we can improve moderation in all parts of our region to address this long-running issue.

A VOTE FOR CHANGE
I'm not one for elaborate agendas. I have no real NS ideological leanings, I have no major foreign allegiances. My agenda is that of change. I fight to preserve the rule of law in TSP, and to fix the problems in our region. A vote for Farengeto is a vote to bring change to TSP, and to see just how Far this region can go.

(This post was last modified: 02-07-2018, 01:03 AM by Farengeto.)

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Silly question: how do you see the state of Lampshades in the Cabinet?

Serious:
1. Do you believe your CRS membership will aid you as PM and if so how?
2. Who is your favorite Prime Minister (or any other head of government) and why?
3. Polling has shown lately that toxicity is becoming less and less concerning to members of TSP, yet you make it a central part of your campaign. Why?
4. Do you see the PM role as more of a spokesman or more of a leader of the government? Please explain.
5. Would you resign from LegComm if elected PM?
6. What do you plan to be should you not be elected?

Above all else, I hope to be a decent person.
Has Been
What's Next?

 

CoA: August 2016-January 2017
Minister of Foreign Affairs: October 2019-June 2020, October 2020- February 2021

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1. Of all the fonts in the world, why did you choose the scientifically proven* worst, Verdana? And Verdana Bold?! All-caps Verdana Bold Italic?!?!

* Survey conducted with sample size of one.

~ Aumeltopia ~

Raccoons are bandits! First they steal your food . . . and then your heart/identity!

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Silly question: how do you see the state of Lampshades in the Cabinet?

We need more Lampshades, and I am prepared to commit.

Serious:
1. Do you believe your CRS membership will aid you as PM and if so how?
2. Who is your favorite Prime Minister (or any other head of government) and why?
3. Polling has shown lately that toxicity is becoming less and less concerning to members of TSP, yet you make it a central part of your campaign. Why?
4. Do you see the PM role as more of a spokesman or more of a leader of the government? Please explain.
5. Would you resign from LegComm if elected PM?
6. What do you plan to be should you not be elected?

1. I believe it does aid as PM. As CRS I have a strong background in TSP regional security, and am better prepared to address the security side of any political situations. As well, we've seen increasing co-ordination between the CRS and Cabinet in recent months, and being a member of both will help me to better bridge interactions between these two institutions when necessary.
2. If we're talking Canadian Prime Ministers, hm... I think I'd have to go with Lester B. Pearson. His turn gave us plenty of good things that are a part of Canadian identity, like universal healthcare and our current flag. He also got a Nobel Peace Prize for helping resolve the Suez Crisis.
3. Toxicity is an issue I feel is ignored until it gets really bad. It's often so engrained we don't really see it as a problem. We are at a lower level of toxicity now, but over the past few weeks I've noticed moments where it has begun to creep back in. I think it's important to keep these things under control now so that they don't become the recurring problem that they always do.
4. As the core role, I'd have to go with neither. To me the main role of the PM is to assist other cabinet members, giving them what they need to succeed and helping their ministers where they can.
5. I see the head of government as a conflict of interest for the Legislator Committee, so ideally I would resign. Preferably I'd aim to find replacements first, but Vietnam is already doing most of the Committee's work so it can still function if I did resign before that.
6. Mostly I'd probably be doing some work for Regional Affairs, as well as my current positions.

1. Of all the fonts in the world, why did you choose the scientifically proven* worst, Verdana? And Verdana Bold?! All-caps Verdana Bold Italic?!?!

* Survey conducted with sample size of one.

 According to my image editor this is "Terminal", not Verdana. For more specific explanations on why you'll have to contact Farengeto's sleep deprived brain.

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Do you envision there ever being a need to have a Deputy PM?

Semi-Unretired

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You already kind of mentioned this, but will you try to increase gameside activity as PM and/or make the PM role a bit more gameside-friendly?

Midwesterner. Political nerd. Chipotle enthusiast. 
Minister of Culture of the South Pacific // Former Prime Minister

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You mention that the Prime Minister should facilitate the work of individual ministers. Do you believe the Prime Minister should limit themselves to that, or should they also set and coordinate a unifying version for the Cabinet?


Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

Former Delegate of the South Pacific
Posts outside High Court venues should be taken as those of any other legislator.
I do not participate in the regional server, but I am happy to talk through instant messaging or on the forum.

Legal Resources:
THE MATT-DUCK Law Archive | Mavenu Diplomatic Archive | Rules of the High Court | Case Submission System | Online Rulings Consultation System

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Do you envision there ever being a need to have a Deputy PM?

I'm not opposed to creating one should the need arise. However given what I've seen so far I do not expect one to be needed currently.

You already kind of mentioned this, but will you try to increase gameside activity as PM and/or make the PM role a bit more gameside-friendly?

The Prime Minister is a rather offsite-focused position by its inherent design, and I'm not aiming to change the structure of the role.

When it comes to gameside my goal as PM will be to improve gameside integration. This will attempt to address some of the larger issues, rather than just the debate over whether Cabinet members should be RMBers. The Local Council has done some good work in recent years, and I don't intend to interfere with the Council's business. Instead, I want to improve the Cabinet's integration and communication with the Local Council. While the two may be different entities, we can't just treat them as entirely separate. Firstly I hope to set up a proper discussion channel between the Local Council and Cabinet. This room will be used for joint discussion for various relevant topics, such as direct coordination on regional events or to communicate with the other on important regional developments. It also important for our government to include gameside in regional events. For example, in our recent Harry Potter festival despite multiple gameside advertisements the event was conducted entirely on offsite. I also want to encourage Regional Affairs to conduct some of the larger scale gameside events we've seen in previous years, such as that of the Ejection Contest.

Even without changing the RMB usage of Cabinet members, plans like these will help to boost gameside activity, and greatly assist in integrating gameside into our regional happenings.

You mention that the Prime Minister should facilitate the work of individual ministers. Do you believe the Prime Minister should limit themselves to that, or should they also set and coordinate a unifying version for the Cabinet?


Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

I think it is important for the Prime Minister to both lead and support the rest of the Cabinet. When it comes to individual ministry policy, I believe as much as possible should be left up to the individual ministers. However it is important to have a coordinated and unified leadership in Cabinet. I've outlined a few of those goals, like measures to improve transparency, in my campaign.

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There has been some talk of ministries doing activities that correspond to other ministries; for example, MoFA doing festivals, rather than deferring to MoRA. How would you ensure there is adequate coordination and cooperation between ministries? Would that be a goal under your premiership?

You mention goals like transparency and civility, which are definitely important. However, in terms of actual policy, what are your goals? How should our foreign policy go in the coming term, for instance?


Inviato dal mio iPhone utilizzando Tapatalk

Former Delegate of the South Pacific
Posts outside High Court venues should be taken as those of any other legislator.
I do not participate in the regional server, but I am happy to talk through instant messaging or on the forum.

Legal Resources:
THE MATT-DUCK Law Archive | Mavenu Diplomatic Archive | Rules of the High Court | Case Submission System | Online Rulings Consultation System

Reply

There has been some talk of ministries doing activities that correspond to other ministries; for example, MoFA doing festivals, rather than deferring to MoRA. How would you ensure there is adequate coordination and cooperation between ministries? Would that be a goal under your premiership?

I've addressed this in my campaign, but I feel it is a serious issue that should never happen in the first place. It's not really evena new problem either; when I first ran for PM I considered it to be a problem, citing my experiences in the previous term.

At its core, this problem doesn't require any particularly elaborate plans to fix. Ministers should be letting the Cabinet know about their plans on their own, but I also hope to encourage this sharing in a few ways. Firstly as part of my emphasis on assisting the ministers I hope to regularly sit down with each of them individually, discussing the state of the ministry and any ongoing or upcoming projects. As well I will schedule full Cabinet meetings throughout the term, gathering everybody to review ongoing and recent events, as well as discuss upcoming plans and other issues from each ministry or the Cabinet as a whole. These will allow Cabinet members to be aware of any plans that may affect them, and give input on them. How often these are held will vary by Cabinet availability and need, but these will be anywhere between weekly and monthly.

Informing the region of the work and upcoming plans of the Cabinet and Ministries will help to keep each other informed in the process. This will be done a couple ways. The first is the more traditional way of simple announcements. These are impersonal and never leave much room for feedback, so I'll primarily be using them for news. I'd also like to finally run those long-awaited Question Periods. While "live" is arguably the more fun one, with the scheduling problems it can run into (both for the ministers and members of the region) I believe longer Q&A periods may better serve this. There would take in questions over several days before releasing the Cabinet responses, giving time for most citizens to ask questions and Cabinet members to answer them without ruling into RL time constraints.

You mention goals like transparency and civility, which are definitely important. However, in terms of actual policy, what are your goals? How should our foreign policy go in the coming term, for instance?

When it comes to overall policy, I will defer most of it to the minister's plans. Each of the candidates running for these positions are far more experienced in their respective fields than myself, and on normal matters I believe they will handle themselves fine. However I do have some aims for each Ministry:

• Foreign Affairs: As a I mention in my campaign, I don't have any particularly GP leanings. I see myself to be non-aligned, and when it comes to foreign policy I oppose aligning ourselves to any particular ideological faction. As a region we should ally ourselves with whoever shares our interests, and focus ourselves on more than just what their regional militaries do.
  
• Regional Affairs: My goal here would be quality over quantity. We've absolutely suffered from "festival fatigue" in recent months. Festivals should be less frequent (averaging somewhere around once a month), but well-planned and larger events. I would also like to see regional events such as the Ejection Contest return. Further, I hope for a revival of our regional journalism. The program has greatly declined over that past couple years, with this term having only a single and somewhat underwhelming full issue released.
  
• Military Affairs: The SPSF has been more successful over the past year than any time I can recall in our history. The military is largely fine to run itself. As with Foreign Affairs I think it is important to preserve our non-aligned status. The SPSF is free to defend or raid as it chooses, but should not make any formal commitments to an ideological stance. I think it is also important that the SPSF doesn't act too independently from the region as a whole. I've experienced numerous occasions over the years where ministers and other military leadership would act independently of the regional government, for instance running secret operations nobody else knew about.
  

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