REGARDING CHANGE, THE VIZIER, AND THE RECALL I recommend that any reader familiarises themselves with the thread located in the Deshret regarding this. Logs of the discussion mentioned below are available in the same thread.
Change can come in many forms, some of which are good, others bad. Change is not something that should be shied away from, as it is necessary for growth, innovation and advancement in various institutions, communities, and even life.
Before I go any further, I'd like to make something clear about the role of the Vizier. The Vizier is appointed by the Pharaoh upon their election, and is then confirmed by the Deshret. The Vizier is part of the cabinet of the Pharaoh and is meant to be the second in command, as well as a team player. The two are meant to work together for the region, and to assist and help each other. The Vizier is not elected. People vote for the Pharaoh in Osiris and the ballot does not mention any Viziers or running mates. Ergo, it can be argued that they aren't just accountable to the Deshret, but also to the Pharaoh who is head of the Executive Branch, as that is where the Vizier sits.
I have never been one to shy away from difficult decisions, no matter how much I would like to avoid them. I set myself the aim of working towards a stable, unified Osiris at the start of my term, and I chose a Vizier who I thought would be the best person to help our new community grow. I believed that George would come to me before voicing opinions which would undermine our region, our community, our government, or even my standing. I believed that due to the year of friendship, we would be able to communicate effectively like no other team in our region's history.
Unfortunately, I was mistaken.Two events have transpired recently which moved me to ask first for George's resignation, and following that, for the Deshret to recall him. The first was a potentially inflammatory statement posted about a region which supported our new government in its transition, a region with whom we have had a rocky relationship in the past but are hoping to build new ties with. Our last attempt at building stronger and firmer ties with Europeia ended badly after I relayed a request from George to their Foreign Minister Cerian Quilor asking for them to rescind the persona non grata status of Lyanna Stark (aka Earth22). That request was far more damaging that I realised at the time and I do not want to risk damaging relations between Osiris and Europeia, especially after they extended a hand of friendship and support to Osiris during a time of great transition and upheaval.
I am not comfortable with the public attacks being levelled on me by George, over this matter, and I am not pleased that George has found no other way to suitably express his feelings on the matter… the thread in Gameplay, followed by the numerous attacks and attempts to bait me in #osi which resulted in him losing OP status in the channel after defying a warning against flame-baiting and then coupled with the insults being used have hurt me incredibly. These are tactics which have no place in Osiris, in a community that is recovering from prolonged contact with a group which used these tactics routinely to secure their hold over the region for so long.
I originally attempted to resolve these issues in private, in the safety of the cabinet channel with a neutral party, Cormac, who was there to mediate if necessary. I hit a brick wall, and found George to be unyielding with his responses and lacking any form of repentance or willingness to compromise or consider why communicating with me would have been beneficial to the actions he took. I sought to discuss my concerns with him as I believed it was a necessary mechanism for this team to work, but after getting aggressive responses from George, who said that I’d have to force him out of the region, followed by the problems I’ve mentioned above, I feel that seeking his removal is the only course of action available to me, in order to ensure that Osiris’ credibility can continue to grow over the coming months, to show other regions, particularly those who have supported us through the difficult few months that we have just left, that their faith was not misplaced, and that Osiris is determined to ensure that it can be a credible and important figure in the world of NationStates.
George’s actions, continually seeking to escalate the publicity given to his view, are simply unacceptable. If allowed to continue, they will cause severe damage to our regional credibility, stability and the effectiveness of the executive. These actions are reprehensible and severely damaging to the region, and they leave me with no recourse but to seek his recall.
Tentatively, I have asked a long standing friend of mine, one who is both fair, and open to discussion, to take over as Vizier should George be recalled. Some have raised concerns as he is an active member of the military and would be unable to continue that role if he was Vizier, and if it comes to it, I will consider someone else for the role should he wish it in order to remain with the Legion, although I am also leaning towards asking the Deshret to allow for Two Viziers: one for the in-game side as Vice-Delegate, the other to handle the duties on the regional forum as a way to allow the government to experience the best of both worlds in that position.
For now though, I ask that you continue to work with me during this tedious and saddening time, it is my hope that the Deshret decides to vote in favour of this recall so we can put these unfortunate events behind us and get on with the actual building of a better Osiris, and whilst doing so, putting a remnant of the Kemetic era to bed once and for all in our community by showing that his behaviour and empire-era tactics and threats are not acceptable in the Fraternal Order.
Before I end this though, I'd like to thank my proof-readers and editors (they know who they are!) for their dearly appreciated assistance with this statement.
I remain, yours sincerely,
Pharaoh and World Assembly Delegate for Osiris
