Chapter 216: Politics
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The highlight of the Founding Ceremony was, of course, the marching ceremony. There were the nine impressive-looking groups of Black Star Troopers, the smart Defense Unit soldiers, Spider Tanks, s.p.a.ce Combat Jet Prototype 003s, and coming up at the rear, the Heaven’s Clouds.
These were all very exciting. Many civilians only found out then how powerful mankind’s technology had become. It was a rude wake up call for those that thought humanity’s technology was still stuck in the 3rd revolution.
"We’ve been through a lot. When we escaped Earth, we couldn’t see hope for our future because humanity was forced to leave the planet that had nurtured our civilization. The cosmos was too dangerous, so much so that we could be wiped out at any time. However, we’ve stuck out despite the challenges and tribulations until today, and now we’re standing firm on this new planet! We’ve found our future!"
This was Yao Yuan giving his speech at the front of the Human Plaza. The atmosphere was solemn. Everyone listened quietly, lost in their thoughts. Maybe the newborns and children who were only less than 5 years old when they got on the Hope couldn’t understand it, but all the adults shared the same belief. A lot of sacrifices had to be made for them to have what they had that day. Everything was precious.
"Let us celebrate and let us not forget! I announce…
"The start of a new human government!"
The plaza erupted into a thunderous applause. People cheered on the top of their lungs. People who didn’t know each other hugged, and some elders even started weeping tears of joy. They’d been waiting for a long time for this day to come.
After the cheering died down, Yao Yuan’s voice rang across the plaza again, "Other than that, the Confinement Order is officially abolished starting from today! However, for your safety, do carry your firearms when you venture out . Of course, this requires H-coins and a firearms permit…"
Just like that, the Founding Ceremony drew to a close. The whole process was recorded by 10 cameras, to be kept as important data for the future. Of course, the day wasn’t only kept in the video tape and central mainframe, it lived on within the people’s hearts. No one would ever forget this momentous day. They told themselves, after they were old, that they must share this story with their grandchildren so that the memory would live on forever through the continuity of humanity…
Following the completion of the Founding Ceremony was the construction of the Yao Yuan-led new government. This time the organization was more official. It mirrored Earth’s old governmental structure by introducing crucial ministries like the Ministry of Industry, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Civil Service, Ministry of Law, and the like…
In terms of a state system, Yao Yuan opted for semi centralization of power and semi-democracy. With him as the chancellor, Yao Yuan had absolute right over politics, military, and most governmental agencies. He had the right to exact, propose, and veto any laws. In other words, the power of the new government was centered around one man, Yao Yuan himself. His power was akin to the emperors of ancient China.
This unusual centralization of power attracted much attention. Even with Yao Yuan’s enormous prestige and reputation, more than 100 people came to him with opinions and persuasions. Most surprisingly, Guang Zhen was part of this party. According to Guang Zhen, since Yao Yuan didn’t have such an audacious ambition, there was no reason for him to hold on to such a huge chunk of power. In his opinion, Yao Yuan only needed absolute military power. He needed to practice more delegation of power.
Power delegation was the natural course of things. After all, it was already the 21st century. The 4th industrial revolution had restructured the whole system of society. Autocracy was no longer possible unless it was demanded by extreme situations like when the Hope was travelling through s.p.a.ce or when humanity was faced with the threat of extinction. If Yao Yuan wanted to adopt autocracy at this time of peace, it was not unlikely that he would be overthrown. After all, even within the Defense Unit and Black Star Troopers, only his comrades in the Black Star Unit were supportive of Yao Yuan’s centralization of power. Their worry was not unfounded. While Yao Yuan was a kind ruler, who could guarantee his successor would be the same? By then, only anarchy could overthrow the ruler for its citizens to regain freedom.
Regarding this point, Yao Yuan had thought long and hard about it. However, autocracy and power delegation were two different things. People would appreciate if things went from severity to leniency instead of the other way round. This was the truth that Yao Yuan believed in.
After the general frame of the new government had settled in, Yao Yuan enlarged the House of Representatives’ power spectrum. Other than military details, they had advisory and consultative right over most things. In other words, Yao Yuan abolished the senate, allowing the House of Representatives to take over the senate’s function. This way, Yao Yuan also cut off the possibility of people using their money or influence to buy the post of a politician.
Simultaneously, the citizens’ power also increased. Naturally, other than the law pertaining to the military, every citizen had a vote to veto the proposed legislation even if it was one that had been pa.s.sed by the House of Representatives. If the legislation was rejected three times, then the person who proposed the legislation would be removed from the House.
The power of the judiciary was separated. The Supreme Court was an isolated presence from the government and House of Representatives. The chancellor didn’t have the right to elect the Supreme Court judge for life; this right went to the citizens via public voting…
Other than that, the honorary medals of hero, guardian, warrior, and defender could be awarded to living members of the society depending on the situation. Whenever one was awarded one of these medals, he or she would enter the House of Representatives as an honorary representative. This role would be for life and he or she wouldn’t have to join the election that happened every 4 years.
The new government currently was still a melting pot. Basically, it absorbed all the benefits from old Earth’s different governing styles. Simultaneously, the const.i.tution for the new government was still in the works. It was a giant underworking, currently involving 1,400 individuals. The outline was expected to be finished in the next 5 years. Editing would be allowed after that.
After Yao Yuan announced these changes, the worried citizens and army sighed in relief. Even though Yao Yuan still held a great amount of power, it was balanced out by the increased power of the House of Representatives. Furthermore, since mankind’s population was still low, pretty much every family had a member who was enrolled in the Defense Unit. Therefore, the citizens weren’t that afraid of a military takeover. However, no one could tell what the future would bring. After all, absolute power corrupts absolutely. The people had seen many such examples.
A month after the Founding Ceremony, the House of Representatives, who had its power enlarged, started demonstrating its newfound power…
"Mr. Speaker! I am adamantly against the Logging Order! We cannot repeat the devastation of nature on this new planet, we need to protect its natural ecosystem!"
This was a hearing on the Logging Order. A few reporters showcased a series of pictures, and the pictures were about the devastating effect the Logging Order had on the planet’s environment.
Every single picture was taken from a bird’s eye view. The few reporters, or more accurately, photographers, framed the ruined jungle-scape perfectly. Viewed from the above, the blackened patch of forest looked like an unsightly, bald patch. The originally lush prehistoric jungle was rendered barren by fire. The images were particularly dreadful for the people who had experienced the effects of pollution firsthand when they were on Earth.
So far, Speaker Matt hadn’t said anything during the hearing. He stared silently at the few people who kept on giving inflammatory statements. Of course, he knew who these people were. They were responsible for the cries of dissatisfaction that arose when the Hope was still in the air, saying that the government wanted to lock them up. Politics… was a world in the shades of gray. There was no absolute right or wrong, and there was always a bigger motive behind everything.
Matt was a senior in the world of politics. In the entire House of Representatives, he was one of the rare few politician-by-trades from Earth. He chuckled inwardly, realizing that these few people wanted to have a game of politics with him. They were still too young to challenge him. With this one hearing, he understood what they were going for…
These people wanted to try out the range of the power in their hands. They wanted to test for Yao Yuan’s reaction using a harmless legislation. The Logging Order was part of environmental protection law; it had nothing to with civil law, administration, or military. They wanted to try for Yao Yuan’s reaction from this angle. The worst that could happen was having the bill denied. However, if Yao Yuan could compromise, then they would surround him like sharks that smelled blood. It would allow them the opening to demand for more and more. Of course, the demands wouldn’t be out of line, but what they wanted was a precedent, a beginning.
Furthermore, the Logging Order still had something to do with the military. Even though the House of Representatives had its power enlarged, there was still a segment they couldn’t touch: the military. However, if they could do something about the Logging Order, this meant that it was entirely possible to send their feelers into the military and from there, undermine Yao Yuan’s absolute hold over the military…
These people’s intention was clear as day to Matt. But he didn’t want to get himself involved in this mess. These dummies had no clue where Yao Yuan’s power came from. Did they seriously think all that power was simply because he was the captain or the military’s top general? No, it was the support of the common people. Tens of thousands of people, Matt included, respected Yao Yuan as a person. He was like a great person listed in the history books, his position unshakable. There was no way the power of the government was going to change while he was still alive!
However…
Maybe the action of these few dummies would be the perfect chance to test whether Yao Yuan would follow the rules. The worst thing one could do in politics was reckless rule-breaking. In a way, they were lucky the rules were created by Yao Yuan himself, because it meant that it would be unlikely for him to break his own rules. Then again… it wouldn’t hurt to know for sure. This would be that perfect chance to find out.
"…The House of Representatives agreed via majority voting that the Logging Order couldn’t be revoked due to its relation to the alien mother nest, but the methods could be changed. For example, a quarantine area could be set up around the affected area for more in-depth investigation to ascertain the situation of the alien cell remains…"
The bill didn’t completely reject the Logging Order but introduced possible changes to it. After the bill was pa.s.sed, it was arrived at Yao Yuan’s table that afternoon.