Sultan of Packilvania
The Sultan of Packilvania (Packilvanian: muShultan aBakhalifaniya) is the hereditary head of state, head of government and commander-in-chief of the armed forces of Packilvania. The Constitution of Packilvanian (Packilvanian: luKhanongur aBakhalifaniya) defines the duties, succession and emoluments of the office of the Sultan of Packilvania. The Constitution confers the Sultan with so much power that he is a de facto absolute monarch. The incumbent Sultan is Namdun III. The heir apparent is Crown Prince Thumim a-Namdun Bedon. The official residence and workplace of the Sultan of Packilvania is the Bingol Royal Palace in the capital city, Bingol, and the official site of imperial coronations is the Temple of the Restoration in the city of Adrien in the province of Ashura.
Powers
Legislative powers
The legislative branch of Packilvania comprises the Sultan and the Parliament of Packilvania (which consists of the Legislative Council and the Consultative Assembly). Thus, the approval of the Sultan is required for the Parliament to pass any law. This means that if the Sultan withholds imperial assent to legislation, the legislation is effectively vetoed and the Parliament does not have the power to override the veto. The Consultative Assembly only has the power to pass non-binding recommendations on legislative proposals thus real legislative power lies with the upper house, the Legislative Council. The Sultan's power to block legislative proposals includes the annual budget and constitutional amendments.
The Sultan has the power to appoint the Legislative Council and determine the process for the appointment of members of the Consultative Assembly. As such, the Sultan has principally appointed members of the Magisterium of Paxism and the Bedonite dynasty to the Legislative Council. The Sultan can also determine how the Consultative Assembly is composed (which currently has between 3,000 to 5,000 delegates who meet once a year for 2 weeks). In addition, the Sultan has the power to appoint the Speaker of Parliament and the Chairperson of the Legislative Council, the presiding officers of the Consultative Assembly and the Legislative Council respectively, thereby indirectly controlling their internal processes and procedures. He has the power to dissolve, suspend the sessions of and reconvene the Parliament.
Judicial powers
According to the Constitution, the judiciary of Packilvania dispenses justice, interprets and applies the law in the name of the Sultan, who has supreme judicial authority. The Sultan has the power to appoint and dismiss the Chief Justice and other justices of the Supreme Court of Packilvania. He also has the power to appoint the Supreme Council of the Imperial Commission for Judicial Appointments which is responsible for appointing judges and developing the judicial profession. He also appoints the Supreme Council of the Imperial Procuratoriate which is responsible for prosecution of cases and the regulation of the legal profession. The Sultan has the power to grant mercy by which he can commute any sentence levied against anyone in the country.
Executive powers
The Sultan has the power to appoint and dismiss the Prime Minister and the other Ministers who comprise the Council of Ministers of Packilvania. The Sultan also has the power to determine the portfolios and powers of those ministers. The Sultan, by convention, does not participate in the daily running of the country. This is not because he is bound by historical precedents but because of practical constraints. Thus, he usually meets with the Prime Minister once a week to discuss various matters of state. Usually, the Council of Ministers can and often does act independently of the Sultan but he does have the authority to limit their powers by decree.
Although the Constitution requires that certain matters of state such as the taxation and appropriation, coinage of currency, the boundaries and powers of provincial governments etc., are passed by statute, there are matters reserved to the Sultan or matters over which he can pass decrees instead. The Supreme Court is responsible for settling disputes about the boundaries of statute and decrees and resolving disputes about overlap. Matters of state over which the Sultan can issue decrees include restriction of access to information on matters of national security and Royal affairs, state-owned land, water resources, matters concerning imperial property, and the affairs of Royal Princes.
He has the power to bestow noble titles. He has direct control over overseas territories like Antimovo and Samokov and over autonomous cities such as Kemer and Bingol.
Foreign and security powers
The Sultan has supreme authority over the Packilvanian Armed Forces and the Packilvanian Expeditionary Force. He has the power to declare war and make peace and to ratify treaties and international agreements. He has the power to receive the accreditations of foreign ambassadors and to designation ambassadors to other countries. He also has the power to expel ambassadors and recognize the independence of foreign nations.
He has the power to oversee the recruitment of personnel for the military including the enforcement of conscription. He has the power to restrict travel to and from Packilvania including the status of foreign citizens and residents. He has the power to deploy military forces, to establish and disband military forces, and to deploy nuclear weapons. The Packilvanian State Security Agency also reports to him and he has the power to appoint its senior directors and Head. He has the power to criminalize criticism of the monarchy and Royal family by Decree.
Religious powers
Although Packilvania is a theocratic state, the Sultan has surprisingly limited powers over Paxism. He is required to be a Paxist and to enforce Paxist teachings in his realm. This is more of a moral and spiritual requirement than a legal one. He has very limited authority to influence the functioning of the Magisterium of Paxism in Packilvania. He does however have the power to dismiss and appoint religious officials in territories and colonies of Packilvania. He has the power to convene a sitting of the Council of the Great Magisters and to request to dismissal of a Magisterial official whom he feels has committed some offence but only the Supreme Magister, currently Tawak Mudawaheen, may grant such a request.
Dynastic powers
The Sultan is the Head of the Bedonite dynasty. He oversees the affairs of the family. All properties and assets owned by the family collectively are held in trust by the Sultan. The Sultan controls the disbursal of stipends to other members of the Royal family as well as their entitlement to emoluments such as security and the use of Royal residence, transport and support staff. The Sultan can also strip a member of the Royal Family of their immunity so that they can be prosecuted by a conventional court of law. If not, the Sultan has the power to adjudicate crimes committed by the Princes himself and all charges against Princes are brought to him not conventional courts. All senior princes of the Royal Family require the Sultans approval before marrying. The Sultan can refuse to allow the marriages of junior princes. Magisters cannot conduct marriages for Princes without
Titles and styles
The Sultan has the following titles:
- By the Divine Beneficence of Noi, His Imperial and Royal Majesty, the Sultan of Packilvania and King of Drakkengard, Custodian of the Three Holy Temples
The Sultan's consorts are entitled to certain titles depending on the order in which they were married and which country paid their bridal price. The first wife of the Sultan is always the chief wife and she enjoys the title of Her Imperial and Royal Majesty, Sultana of Packilvania and Queen of Drakkengard. Other consorts are referred to as Her Imperial Highness, Princess of Packilvania. Namdun did not like how his wives were equal in rank to his daughters, so he had the Kingdom of Drakkengard pay their dowries so that they can enjoy the title of Her Majesty, Queen of Drakkengard.
The Constitution states that all of the Sultan's offspring shall enjoy the title of Prince of Packilvania and the offspring of his male children shall be Princes of Packilvania. It does not place a limit on how far the title of Prince can be passed down. Furthermore, many other relatives were granted the title of Prince and Princess of Packilvania which they could pass on to their offspring by the male line. The consorts of Princes of Packilvania also enjoy the title of Prince of Packilvania. The Sultan does have the power to strip a Prince of the titles and emoluments of a Prince.
The Sultan can be addressed by the following styles when he is acting in right of Packilvania:
- Your Imperial Majesty
- His Imperial Majesty
The Sultan