Users browsing this thread:

**Amerion** · 08-12-2020, 06:00 AM

INAUGURAL ADDRESS

Prime Minister Nakarisaune, Chair of the Assembly Rabbitz, Chief Justice Kringalia, members of the Assembly, and fellow South Pacificans,

I am deeply honoured by this opportunity to serve as your Delegate. It is the highest responsibility that has humbled all those who have been entrusted with it and I speak sincerely from the heart when I say that I too feel this deep sense of duty.

Yesterday, in the Assembly and before an audience comprised of members of the government along with citizens from every island of our region, I took an oath of office which I have since given a great deal of thought.

“… that I will faithfully discharge my duties as such to the best of my ability without fear or favour, affection or ill-will; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the Coalition; and that I take this obligation freely, in good faith, and with full disposition, for the good of the Coalition of the South Pacific.”

These words which can often seem somewhat formal and perhaps unnecessary when spoken in portions do as a whole mean so much more. It speaks to the role of government and commitment we have all made to serve you as faithfully as we can in advancing this region we all call home. As Delegate, I pledge to you here and now that I will always be mindful of my duty to you, that I will as others have before me, continue to safeguard what is the oldest democracy in NationStates, and I hope you will lend me your support as I do so.

If I may, I would like to speak on another matter of great concern to not only us as South Pacificans but as citizens of the world. Beyond the vast seas that surround us, in lands some of us have yet to venture, there is a reality which for many has proven an immensely challenging one. One which will come to define a generation. I believe that in a region as large and as diverse as ours, there are no doubt those among us who have experienced these trials and tribulations firsthand. Indeed, it is all but certain that we have each been affected by the year that is 2020 in one way or another.

In this annus horribilis, our community has for me at least — and I suspect for many others as well — been like a lighthouse in a raging storm. By simply being who we are, by forging ahead with our community, whether it be on the regional message board or the channels of Discord, we have inadvertently offered a respite in a world which sorely needs it.

What I ask of you now, I ask not only as your Delegate but as your fellow South Pacifican and a human being. I ask that you continue to be kind to one another wherever and whenever you can. As nations, we don’t often see the faces or hear the stories behind the flags but they are there and some are in difficult circumstances today. As cheesy as it may be, one internet quote holds especially true in these uncertain times: kindness costs nothing but it can mean everything.

Thank you very much.