Chapter 4: Institutional Reform (Part 2)

The “grassroots fieldwork” this time was personally organized by Du Wen’s Social Work Department. It not only received the support of Ma Qianzhu, but even Wen Desi, who had always been dismissive of Du Wen, seemed very enthusiastic, expressing his “strong support.” What kind of medicine are these two selling together now…

As he was wondering, he saw Ma Jia, stooping and holding a speech manuscript, already moving over. Xiao Zishan’s seat was in the second row near the aisle, so Ma Jia sat down right next to him.

Xiao Zishan knew he was the next speaker and figured he had moved over for convenience.

“Director Xiao, has the plan for the administrative chiefs’ grassroots fieldwork been released yet?” Ma Jia suddenly asked in a low voice.

“The Social Work Department is arranging it. The details haven’t been released yet,” Xiao Zishan said, wondering why he was suddenly asking about this.

Ma Jia said “oh” and continued, “I hear the scale is quite large this time. From Executive Committee members to department heads and chief researchers, all senators not on the front lines of production or the military will be sent to the countryside in shifts for one to three months…”

Xiao Zishan was slightly taken aback. Such a large scale? He had originally thought it would just be a dozen or so senators divided into a few work groups to conduct rural research.

“The scale is indeed not small.” Xiao Zishan suddenly became cautious. Why was Ma Jia talking to him about this? He changed the subject. “I wonder how effective this institutional reform will be.”

“It’s impossible to satisfy everyone,” Ma Jia said, patting his briefcase confidently. “As long as the majority finds it acceptable, that’s enough. What everyone is really fighting for is a guarantee for the future. Words alone are not enough; there must be practical action. Speaking of which, you, as the Director of the General Office, also need to keep up with the times. You need to build more villas, otherwise how will the maids be arranged? The comrades will definitely have opinions…”

Just then, Ma Jia saw that Yu E’shui had finished his speech and quickly clapped a few times. He stood up and said, “I’m going to speak now. We can talk later!”

Ma Jia’s speech was to announce the institutional reform plan drafted by the leading group. It was currently just a draft. Xiao Zishan had seen this draft a few days ago. Contrary to what most senators thought, institutional reform not only involved the central power-political system of the Senate-Executive Committee, but also major issues such as the operation of local governments and the distribution of power and finances between the central and local levels. These issues had not been clearly stipulated in the past, only having “provisional measures.”

The first part of the draft was an exposition on the status of the Senate, its relationship with the state, and its relationship with the government, something that had never been done before.

Because it involved the form of the state, it was equivalent to amending the constitution, so it was also called the “First Amendment to the Common Program.”

In the First Amendment, the Senate was no longer the supreme legislative body of the state they had personally established—whether it was called the “Great Song” or the “Human Empire under the Rule of the Senate”—but a symbol of supreme power that transcended the entire state.

“The Senate is the source of all things, the Mandate of Heaven. It is the symbol of the state, the embodiment of supreme power.

“The Senate possesses the highest secular and religious authority.

“The Senate is the supreme commander of the state’s armed forces.

“The Senate possesses the final power of judgment in all matters.”

Ma Jia read out these magnificent words with a powerful voice. Qian Shuiting’s heart stirred. Wasn’t this just Liu Xiang’s theory of “the Senate is the emperor”? But here, the Senate was elevated to a near-divine position…

In terms of the specific institutional arrangements, the new political system abolished the old Senate-Executive Committee system and adopted a new one.

Under the new system, the Senate was no longer a parliament, but a symbol of the state’s supreme power and its final arbiter, with a status similar to the “Assembly of Experts” in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The Chairman of the Senate is the supreme leader of the Senate state, as well as the leader and symbol of the Senate. The Chairman’s powers include appointing and dismissing commanders of the armed forces, the Chief Justice of the Arbitration Court, and the head of the cabinet; declaring war or armistice; coordinating the relationship between the leaders of the three branches of state power; issuing letters of appointment, and dismissing the head of government if they are guilty of malfeasance or if the parliament deems them politically incompetent.

The Chairman is elected by the Senate. The Senate holds an annual meeting to discuss national affairs and the Chairman’s conduct. The Senate can depose the Chairman with a two-thirds majority if they are deemed incompetent or have lost the necessary qualifications for the position. The Chairman’s term is four years, with a limit of one re-election.

The government operates under a cabinet system, abolishing the Executive Committee system. The Secretary of State is the head of government, second only to the Chairman. The Secretary of State manages the daily work of the state through the Central Government Council. He has the authority to appoint several People’s Commissars to oversee various specialized affairs. The Secretary of State is elected by the parliament for a four-year term, with a limit of one re-election. The People’s Commissars are nominated by the Secretary of State and require parliamentary approval.

The nomination, election, and appointment of the Secretary of State and the People’s Commissars all require the approval of the Senate.

The various ministries and commissions previously under the supervision of the Executive Committee members, with a few exceptions, are all incorporated into the Central Government Council system and reorganized according to the principle of “large ministries.” In this way, the Secretary of State becomes the rightful prime minister, and the People’s Commissars are equivalent to deputy prime ministers in charge of specific areas. The Secretary of State can effectively manage and control the various departments of the government, unlike in the past where power was dispersed among many.

The new Central Government Council is roughly divided into: the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Justice, the Ministry of Armed Forces, the Ministry of Land and Transport, the Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, the Ministry of Culture and Science, the Ministry of People’s Livelihood and Labor, the Ministry of People’s Security, and the Planning Council.

The parliament is the supreme legislative body of the Senate state, adopting a bicameral system. Currently, only the upper house is established. Every adult senator with full senatorial rights automatically becomes a member of the upper house and enjoys the powers of a member of parliament.

The parliament enjoys all the powers that a supreme legislative body should have, such as the right to approve all treaties, agreements, and contracts with foreign countries; to review the financial budget; to question and impeach the Secretary of State, People’s Commissars, and ministers at any time; and to approve emergency measures required by the government. However, any bill passed by the parliament must be approved by the senators before it can become law. The Speaker of the parliament is elected annually and can be re-elected.

To ensure that parliamentary resolutions do not violate the Common Program, the Senate has the right to supervise, review, and veto all resolutions and proposals passed by the parliament.

Although this system currently amounts to “self-supervision and self-approval,” with the Senate and the upper house being effectively the same, it prepares the institutional ground for future power-sharing with naturalized citizens. When the conditions are ripe in the future, the Senate will retreat behind the scenes, existing as a “guardian,” only guiding the general direction and not directly intervening in specific political affairs.

The Arbitration Court maintains its independent status and is not subordinate to the Central Government Council system. The Central Government Council will establish a separate Ministry of Justice to coordinate with the Arbitration Court. The Arbitration Court, as the supreme court and supreme procuratorate of the Senate state, is directly responsible to the Chairman of the Senate, and its chief official is also appointed and dismissed by the Chairman of the Senate.

The original General Office of the Executive Committee will be split in two: the Senate General Office, which serves the Senate, and the Government Affairs Council General Affairs Department, which serves the legislative and executive branches.

Under the new system, in addition to continuing to enjoy the powers stipulated in the Common Program, senators also have the right to automatically become members of the upper house. It is explicitly stated that senators naturally possess the power to manage any state institution, provided that the Senate as a whole has authorized them to do so.

The First Amendment once again explicitly states that the persons, property, and various rights of the senators are “sacred and inviolable.” Any infringement on the person or property of a senator by any organization or individual, other than the Senate itself, is considered disrespect and an infringement on the Senate. It will be dealt with as the crime of “lèse-majesté”—with the maximum penalty being death.

To fully guarantee the needs of the senators’ succession, a Senate College of Arms, led by the Senate General Office, will be established. It will be responsible for researching and managing the continuation of senatorial bloodlines and the inheritance of titles; designing coats of arms and family crests for senators; registering the family status of senators; and regularly publishing the Senatorial Almanac. At the same time, the Senatorial Marriage and Inheritance Law will be reviewed and approved as soon as possible to ensure the security and reliability of senators’ marriages, families, and inheritances.

The First Amendment makes a clear distinction between the property of the Senate and the property of the state under the rule of the Senate for the first time. The Senate will establish a Senatorial Fund, the income of which will be used to pay regular dividends on senatorial shares. The sources of the Senatorial Fund are 20% of the spoils of war, commonly known as the “Senate’s fifth”; the allocation of shares in some state-owned enterprises; and the shares of some enterprises directly under the Senatorial Fund that will be established soon.

At the same time, it clarifies the regulations for senators’ personal engagement in business activities: senators with official posts are not allowed to directly engage in business activities themselves. There are no restrictions on the personal business activities of senators’ family members, but they must be approved by the Senate and pay taxes according to the regulations. They are not allowed to invest in the enterprises of naturalized citizens or natives in any form, but they are encouraged and supported to engage in business activities individually or in partnership with other senators’ family members.

A Senatorial Guard Bureau, under the command of the Senate General Office, will be established to be responsible for the personal safety of senators and their families.

…

Xiao Zishan noticed that everyone was listening very carefully to the part about the guarantees of senatorial power. Some were constantly marking up their documents, probably to highlight the key points. He noticed that the former department heads and directors were all eager to try their luck. This major reshuffle would undoubtedly bring greater opportunities for many. The expressions of the Executive Committee members and ministers, however, were varied. Those like Wu Nanhai, who were already deeply rooted and had a good public and private reputation, were naturally sitting comfortably. Those with an average reputation or with too many replaceable talents couldn’t help but show a worried expression. A few, however, were completely unperturbed, their faces unreadable. And the few senators working in the Great Library had even more varied and interesting expressions.

Yu E’shui looked relaxed and at ease. Xiao Zishan knew that the Great Library had been defined as a “unit directly under the Senate” and would not be merged into the Central Government Council. The Senate was unwilling to give up this huge technological advantage.