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Hello and welcome to the interview, my name is Fae. Before we begin with the questions could you please introduce yourself to the readers.

Greetings, eJapan, my name is Dokomo and I am here to answer your questions thoughfully gathered by Faeyas to help give you a better idea of my positions on government. I hope you take the time to read the entire article and respond with your thoughts.

Thank you for that introduction. I will now begin to ask you a series of general questions. As to not favor one candidate over the other in responses I will not be asking any follow up questions to your reposes. Furthermore, I will simply ask the questions already prepared, all you have to do is reply. Since this is the case, I ask that you try to be as clear as possible when answering the questions I have for you today. Thank you.

The first series of questions have to do with you as a player. Let’s begin with our first question:

Why did you decide to run for president?

I decided to run because I believe that Japan has the potential to be a leader for peace and justice in the eWorld and I think I have the ideas to bring our nation to that goal.

What experience do you have in eRepublik and how does this affect your candidacy?

I have been playing eRep for 5 months now and have served in Congress 4 times in that period. I have been active in the governments of eNK and eJapan and have experienced many events in both nation. I think that my history has given me a unique perspective on what most peace loving people want out of the game.

How are you helping your country right now?

Currently, I am working as a Congressman and as a Secretary of Immigration. I have been working over the weekend on getting our MPP with Lithuania renewed so we can help defend them against Polish aggression.

What do you plan to do should you not win?

I will continue my duties as Congressman, and keep advocating the policies I have talked about in the campaign.

If you were not running would you vote for your opponant? Why?

If I want not running, the election would one person only, so without a candidate to compare my opponent to, I don't see the point of the question.

If you were not running, out of anyone in the country who would you vote for? Why?

I would vote for Reiji Mitsurugi. He has a vision for Japan that has inspired many people here, and is a firm and forceful person.

If you could travel through time, where would you go?

The Future!

What is the greatest feature of RL Japan?

Japan is one of the most innovative societies on the planet. The difficulties of living there are met with new inventions and social structures and it's always fun to see how they come about.

Who do you love more: Daddy or Chips?

Chips

What is your favourite J-League team?

I prefer baseball and the Chunichi Dragons, who were the team for the now Chicago Cubs player Kosuke Fukudome.

With that, let’s begin our series of domestic questions

So your first domestic question is: You have published your cabinet to be… what was your reasoning behind your choices?

My first priority is to find people with expertise in the field. Those who are already running ministries obviously got a big plus. Then I looked at what I wanted each position to do. I created a few now spots because I do not want to put everything on one person but rather build multiple layers in each Ministry while freeing people to specialize in a certain area.

If people in your Cabinet were acting inappropriately or not doing their job, how would you handle the situation?

If they are not fulfilling the duties of their position then I will find someone who can do so.

Article four of Chapter Five of our Constitution (writing that makes me feel smarter ) indicates that the congress has the ability to remove cabinet members from office. If such a vote is cast, will you abide by the rules set forth in our constitution?

I will, because I think is 67% of Congress can agree that a Minister is not performing, than they are probably right.

In your opinion, how did our cabinet ministers perform this past month?

Foreign Affairs has done an excellent job keeping activity of the diplomatic corps up. We have had some issues with our activites in Sol and PEACE being uncommunicated, which I hope to change. Finance has been a black hole and requires a complete overhaul. Internal Affairs has taken on a ton of new duties and I expect great things out of them soon. Defense has done well, and has formed a solid core that we will build off of.

Your Cabinet isn’t the only aspect of government that affects a presidency. The role of Congress is also important so we shall move onto Questions concerning congress.

Do you believe that members of congress are given the will of the people, or perhaps just the privilege to represent some of the people?

Any representative has to vote according to their own conscience. The people entrust them to make the right decision but a direct democracy is not what we have to work with.

Should members of congress be held liable for what they say in public?

Every citizen is responsible for what they say.

Should a president be held liable for the words and actions of congress members?

I can hardly see how, considering that the President and the Congressman may be political opponents.

Do you believe that the President has powers not detailed in the Constitution or given in the game? Such as unilateral treaty nullification/ratification powers or veto authority or are these powers that belong to congress?

As seen on the contract forums, a President does generally have the power to accept and break contracts for their nation. I would suggest that the Constitution be amended to clarify what powers the two branches are willing to split.

Do you believe the President has the final decision to attack a country, or is that a role of Congress?[/

Per game mechanics, a President can declare war, but Congress must approve it.

Does the President have the power to delay or veto a decision of congress?

No.

Do believe there must be a change in voting system? For example, to have voting result secret until voting ends?

I think that is a question for the Admins to ponder.

There is a forum topic called "discrete matters", visible only by congressmen. What is your opinion on said forum and its invisibility from public eye?

First, its Discreet Matters, and yes it is necessary. There are things that the Government is told in confidence and must be discussed among the government without betraying that confidence.

What is the role of the president, in your opinion, in comparison to Congress?

The President in comparison to Congress needs to be the administrator of the nations Ministries and diplomacy, while Congress works on legislation, ratification, and discussion.

Now let us discuss your role in all of this, the role of the president:

What would you say are the three biggest accomplishments of our current president?

Standing up to Theocracy, enlarging the military, reforming the forums.

What aspect of eJapan’s government system that you feel is working the best and why?

Our discussion system for legislation works very well and results in good discussion and consensus usually.

What aspect do you feel needs the most work and why?

We need to bring more people into government and ensure that they have the power and responsibility to carry out the portfolio they are given.

What do you see for Japan's future?

I see us being a leader in Asian affairs and a neutral bulwark dedicated to the defense of our allies and friends.

Name 3 heroes of eJapan and 3 traitors of eJapan.

KITA Ikki, Chaotic1, and Kokawa are truly dedicated to our nation. As for traitors, I think this question is uncouth and I refuse to answer it.

Now let us move onto questions will be concerning the Army:

What do you consider the purpose and mission of the Army?

The Army and Navy are for defending the territory of Japan and our Allies.

How much do you think the government should spend on the Army per month?

The government should spend enough to fund 2-3 q1 guns for our soldiers each day as well as providing the wages and material for our q5 weapons company. We should also build up a supply of moving tickets for use by our mobile forces.

How should the Army be funded?

The Army and Navy should be funded using Gold and JPY from the government bank. I believe that our current tax level allows us to fund the military adequately.

How high in your priorities is increasing eJapans defensive strength?

As seen by the events of the last 3 months, Japan's defense must be always in our minds. That said, we will be concentrating first on Foreign Policy next month while maintaining the current military structure.

Please describe the current state of our military in detail.

Our current military is divided into an Army and Navy of 13 Soldiers and 9 Sailors. These servicemen and women are sent 2-3 q1 guns from government funded operations each day to use in the training wars that PEACE provides. Meanwhile the military runs a q5 weapons company to store these powerful weapons for emergencies.
The final sets of domestic questions are concerning eJapan’s citizens, economy and culture.

What role do you think Japanese culture should play in our nation?

Japanese culture is one of the main reasons for non RL Japanese to move here. The popularity of Japan has caused people from all around the globe to come here and it provides a unifying theme to our nation.

Do you support the righteous nation philosophy? And if so, what steps will you take if elected as President this term?

Yes. I will begin deploying our military according to Righteous Nation precepts, including the current Polish War. Also, we must clearly spell out to our allies the benefits and duties of the Righteous Nation so that in our talks we can show them the strength of our ideals.

What is the most effective way to promote the Righteous Nation philosophy in the world?

The most effective method has been and will continue to be our actions. By being a Righteous Nation along with publication of the reasoning behind our actions, we can convince others to take similar actions as well.

How are you planning on insuring the growth and strength of Japanese citizens, and Japan as a whole?

The first will be to bring a strong mentoring program to the fore. Also, we must begin using RL advertising to create a baby boom. Continued information transmitted by media and the wiki will also help.

How will you ensure new citizens and immigrants settle in the border regions to increase wall size?

We can offer moving tickets through the mentoring program to q5 hospitals.

There is a baby boom of native Chinese in eChina. Is there any plan to have a native Japanese baby boom in eJapan? And also, if eJapan turns into a Japanese language dominated country, will you continue to stay here?

There are plans but how well they work will depend on how we manage to bridge our two languages. If Japanese becomes dominant then I shall learn to rely on google translate!

What do you want to do to increase the activity within the country?

I want to get more people into groups, or societies, or any social circle. We need to help people identify where their interests lie, be it military, economy, or politics, and help direct them to activities in those fields.

Are you well acquainted with Japan's political party leaders?

I would say so. I talk to party presidents almost every day and am involved in the government ministries.
What is your favorite newspaper in game?

For fun, the Oracle
For serious business, my own iChannel provides.

Do you own a company?

No, frankly, I am not a good businessman since I am far too stingy for my own good.

Is there anything you want to do against monopolies in the Japanese market?

If there is price gouging going on in the market there are several remedies. One would be to offer a government loan for a lower quality competitor to upgrade. Another would be to find a friendly business and offer them a loan to import such goods.

Have you got plans to have more active governmental companies?

Yes, I think that our current companies are doing well currently, but having a government run company of higher quality to provide a wage floor would be helpful for stabilizing any economic downturns we might experience.

What is your SPECIFIC plan to turn around the lagging economy of eJapan?

The problem is actually that for some people our economy is doing incredibly well. I know that with my current salary I can buy 2-3 q1 guns a day and q2 food. This is due to moderate wages and very low prices on goods. The problem though is that our exchange rate is so high that we cannot differentiate between wages at low skill levels. Thus if we lower the exchange rate a bit, there will be some inflation in wages and good prices, but it will be countered by the increased purchasing power of the majority of the populations.

Will there be increase on tax? if so, in what areas?

The only increase on taxes I plan are to keep income taxes at or below 10% while maintaining high import taxes for our manufacturing sector so that we can concentrate on growing and exporting goods.

What is your stance on Tariffs?

Tariffs or Import Taxes are very important. Manufacturing is pretty much the only industry Japan has for foreign consumption since nearly every country can produce high grain of its own. Thus, by favoring local production through Import Taxes we can give provide a favorable growing environment for our companies.

Now that we have examined your position looking inwards, let’s turn our gaze outwards and discuss international matters:

What are your general goals, and opinions concerning eJapan’s Foreign Policy?

My first goal will be to make Japan's voice count in International Affairs. We need to take firm stances and communicate them to the world.

Do you have any connections to anyone in country other than Japan that is part of the government?

I have a direct red line to Afanaisiy Drago, President of eNK. I also have contact with the Presidents of UK, USA, and Arthk, from PEACE and know other officials around the world.

Would you consider sending further diplomatic missions to the Theocratic State of South Korea? Why?

I would agree to talks with the Theocrats. We know that currently we cannot be victorious militarily, but I remain hopeful we cna come to a diplomatic resolution.

Please tell us about current affairs with regards to PEACE to the best of your knowledge.

Our current affairs with PEACE are decent. What we need to concentrate on is informing them of the unique challenges in our region and then helping them out against foreign aggression from other alliances.

There remains concern among our allies in PEACE GC that eJapan's commitment to the alliance wavers or is turning to anti-PEACE elements that may threaten our country's relationship with what has been our primary national security provider (that is, PEACE). How can you provide more reassurance in the area of Foreign Relations (particularly in this case)?

I think we can assure PEACE of our commitment by making those commitments. We need to sign MPP's on a regular basis with PEACE nations and devote our military to PEACE actions.

Should the citizens of Japan move on with their lives and leave the Theocratic State of South Korea alone? Why?

From what I believe, eJapan made a promise to South Korea to shelter them until they could form a stable nation. We may not get there during my administration, but I will work towards that goal. If the Theocrats want us to leave them alone, they would do well to think of a way to peacefully integrate with the original South Koreans.

Without doubt, eJapanese diplomacy was at least inadequate, especially concerning eSK fiasco. What do you plan to do in order to improve eJapan's position and image internationally?

I think the first thing we need to do is be more open about our policies and goals. One reason the Theocrats were able to win in SK was because we did not have the time or publicity for our cause that South Africa did that month. With more communication and planning we can assure success before we take action.

How would you solve the "Korean Question" - both of them

I am very unsure of what this means. If you are talking about the Theocrats we will have to use diplomacy currently. As for North Korea, I believe it should be split between Russia and Japan.

If an alliance strays from the path of righteousness, is it better to leave or to reform them?

It depends on how far they have strayed. If the member nations are unanimous in their actions then there is little hope and we would do well to leave. But if there is a minority we can work with then we should hold onto hope.

In your opinion, has Sol strayed from the path of righteousness? Has PEACE GC?

Some nations in Sol have. Some nations in PEACE have. We can guide them back.

Your thoughts about USA, Russia, China, and Indonesia, our immediate neighbors. Do we need to engage in more diplomacy, more talks? And not just that, but how would you plan to do it?

Yes, the key must be to appoint people whose sole job is to engage these countries every day with mutual issues and concerns.

Lastly, the most obvious question that should conclude this interview: Why do you think you are the best candidate for this job, and why should eJapan's citizens trust you with the position?

I believe I have a vision of inclusiveness and responsibility that will bring a more active government to Japan. I believe that I am in tune with the ideals of Japan and will make the correct decisions to ensure our mutual prosperity.

Thank you very much for your time. Your answers will be openly published for all Japanese Citizens to read in hopes of helping them decide their future president. I wish you good luck with your campaign and the upcoming election.