Defender of The Oan Isles
The Defender of The Oan Isles is the monarch and head of state of The Oan Isles. The incumbent Defender is Ese Ulua.
Legal personality
The State as a corporation sole respresents the power to make, carry out and enforce laws. The Constitution divides this power among three branches and levels of the government. The National Assembly can pass laws or amend the constitution at will and, by extension, wields all power of the State. It is, in effect, the Sovereign of The Oan Isles, instead of the monarch. The Defender, instead, personifies the sovereign. This confers onto the Defender many of the characteristics of monarchy. This has the following implications:
- He is immune from prosecution.
- Diplomats are deployed in his name.
- He has the right to use monarchic styles and symbols and the right to be addressed and treated as such.
- Oaths of office are sworn to him.
- Laws, treaties and orders require his signature to take effect, although he cannot refuse to sign them.
- Justice is carried out in his name.
Powers
His legal personality, as discussed above leaves him with few actual powers. These include:
- He has the power to appoint the National Council with the consent of the National Assembly.
- He has the power to appoint the National Court with the consent of the National Council.
- He has the power to call meetings of the National Council.
- He has the power to request access to secret documents and correspondence.
He, otherwise, has the following ceremonial powers:
- He has the power to designate national monuments.
- He has the power to designate national symbols.
- He has the power to designate national holidays.
- He has the power to confer patronage.
- He has the power to confer honour.
- He has the power to receive the accreditations of foreign diplomats.
- He has the power to receive and send visits from and to foreign heads of state and government.
The following powers form the customs of the Oan nation together with the Council of Chiefs and the Council of Diviners:
- He has the power to designate ceremonial dress.
- He has the power to regulate the initiation of children into adulthood.
- He has the power to regulate the payment of dowries.
- He has the power to regulate the payment of damages.
- He has the power to regulate the proceedings of funerals.
- He has the power to regulate the proceedings of marriages.
- He has the power to regulate the proceedings of cleansing rituals.
- He has the power to regulate the legitimisation of children.
- He has the power to regulate the coronation of chiefs and inauguration of clan heads.
- He has the power to summon meetings of chiefs and clan heads and to request audiences.
He has the following reserve powers:
- He has the power to dismiss the National Council.
- He has the power to suspend the National Assembly.
- He has the power to command and direct the armed forces.
- He has the power to issue temporary orders.
- He has the power to appoint temporary officials and staff.
Emoluments
The Defender has several emoluments which include:
- He has the use of the Serene Palace for his work.
- He has the use of the Heavenly Palace for his residence.
- He has the use of a joint service detachment for his security and transport.
- He has the use of a state plane.
- He has the use of a state helicopter.
- He has the use of a state car.
- He has the use of a state vessel.
- He has the use of the Office of the Defender as his staff.
- He has the use of exclusive medical care.
- He is paid a state pension upon the end of his reign.
- He is paid a state stipend as a compensation.
- He is paid a state budget for the exercise of his duties.
Succession
The Defender is elected by and from among the Council of Chiefs every seven years. There is no Crown Prince. The Council of Chiefs designates a member to act as a Regent in case of death, abdication or incapacitation.
Accession
The following proceedings take place as part of the Defender's formal accession to his office:
- He must swear an oath to uphold the law, administered by the Chief Justice.
- He must drip his blood onto the scroll of his oath.
- He must be conferred with the the regalia of office.
- He must be declared to the people.
- He must be saluted by the tribes.
- He must be sworn loyalty to by the chiefs.
Title
He has the formal style "His Serene Majesty", the alternative style "Your Serene Majesty" and the informal style "Sir". He has the title, "By the providence of the Creator, for and by the good of the people, His Serene Majesty, the Defender of the Realm". He has a longer "proclamation", which is an official praise song.
Incumbent
The incumbent or reigning Defender is Ese Ulua. He has been on the throne for 3 years, with four years left until his reign is terminated. He is currently in his early fifties and his birthday is a national holiday. He is the Chief of the Ulua tribe. In his youth, he was an officer in the armed forces. He retired with the rank of Lieutenant. He studied Law at the University of La Rochelle. He was the head of the Niayena Ulua Foundation, with a focus on youth development for a great deal of his career. He had a stint in politics as a lobbyist for the Ulua clan under the second constitution. His prominence led his father to nominate him, instead of his older brother, as Chief of the Ulua. He was resoundingly elected. Several years later, when the second constitution came into effect, he was elected by popular ballot to the position of head of state, with a hand in governance. Under the new Constitution, he was elected by the Council of Chiefs to a term as the Defender, a largely ceremonial position. He has a regal disposition, eloquent speech and warm personality. He is infamous for his spontaneity. For instance he once disappeared to Tretrid during a time of tension without a word, leaving a note on the fridge. He is an avid fan of extreme sports, fishing and Oan traditional wrestling. He is well known for his tact and strategic abilities. He exerts a fairly disproportionate influence on the National Council. He has currently resides in the Serene Palace. He has a friendly relationship with the royalty of Dragonia, especially the Grand Duke and Crown Prince. He has extremely high local approval ratings, going as high as 97%.
