Alexey
TNPer
March 28, 2020-Rosario, Capital District, Cojedes
Members of the National Assembly have gathered in the famed halls of the capitol building for the State of the Republic Speech that is soon to be given by President Andrea Lacasa. Along with the members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, Justices of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court, along with the majority of members of the Cabinet of Secretaries have arrived and taken their seats. Behind the podium where the President will soon speak, Chairman of the Senate Nestor Estávez and Speaker of the House Catalina Jose Maria Estavez sit. As the members finally take their seats, the Sergaent at Arms appears to announce the arrival of the President.
Sergeant-At-Arms: “Madam Speaker, Mr. Chairman, the President of the Republic of Cojedes!”
The whole room erupts into cheers and applause. The President begins to make her way down the main row of the House while shaking hands with members on each side of the asile. After shaking hands with members for a long time, President Lacasa makes her way to the front row where she greets the Constitutional and Supreme Court Justices as well as the members of her cabinet. Finally, President Lacasa make her way up to the main podium and shakes hands with both the Chairman of the Senate and the Speaker of the House. She hands them copies of her speech which will soon begin. The Speaker then bangs her gavel three times.
Speaker of the House of Representatives: “Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the Republic of Cojedes Andrea Lacasa!”
The room erupts into applause and shouting again. Members rise from their seats, as do the guests that are watching from the gallery. After a short time, the members sit down and the President begins her speech.
President Andrea Lacasa: “Madam Speaker, Mr. Chairman, members of the House and Senate, members of the Cabinet of Secretaries, Justices of the Constitutional and Supreme Courts, members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, invited guests, and my fellow citizens: it is my deepest honor to stand here before you today to present my first State of the Republic Address. Our great Republic has been through many challenges over the past years. Every time, we have come out on top and we continue to do so to this day. Together, we have become a country united for the common cause of helping our fellow citizens and looking in on each other. These are values that our country has always hold true to our hearts and it is because of your work that we have come this far. Today, I stand before you amazed at the progress we have made in the past few months. We have had serious strides in the past year, from our economic growth to our recognition of the Andrennian and Gojan languages as minority languages in our Republic. One of the biggest successes of our country in the past few months was announced only a day ago. By the end of 2020, we will be fully self sufficient on oil and natural gas production! As part of this plans to increase of production of oil, we have begun the creation of a joint oil venture with the nation of Maloria. The new oil company, which will open within the coming months, will be called the Sol del Mayo-León Oil Company. This is just another way that Cojedes has opened its door to its allies in the previous year.”
The room erupts into applause and cheering again as members rise from their seats to applaud the announcement the President has just made.
“We are on the verge of several important deadlines and I want you all to know that our country is on track and we will meet these deadlines in the coming months and days. Our country has made major success in the medical industry and we have been pleased with our successes in the healthcare field. Tonight, joining us in the gallery is NICU RN Juanita Sarmienta. Sarmienta has been a nurse for the past ten years working in the PICU ward at Rosario Medical Center. She told me weeks ago that she has seen babies born that did not have functioning lungs, fully functional hearts, and numerous other deficits caused by premature birth. She also stated that of these children that she has taken care of that in recent years the number of cases actually leaving the hospital not resulting in death has risen tremendously. Nurse Sarmienta, I want to thank you tonight for your continuous service amongst those who do not always have a chance in this world. I want to thank you for all your valiant efforts in helping these babies have a name and a voice. Tonight, I am pleased to announce that after several weeks of discussion, the House and Senate have passed a bill allocating 20 billion pesos to aiding in PICU wards across the nation and Nurse Sarmienta, I tell you this night, it is all because of you!”
The whole room again erupts into applause to show their support for Nurse Juanita Sarmienta. Nurse Sarmienta begins to cry as the members applaud her and have announced their support for a 20 billion peso package for PICU equipment and training.
“Thank you Nurse Sarmienta for your valiant service. Also over the past year, we have made tremendous strides in rebuilding our military strength. Last year alone, we saw the formation of three new naval groups as well as the beginning of construction on the RCN Evita Arias and the RCN Mendoza. In the Army, we have completed building of new lines of tanks as well as new Armored Personnel Carriers, and we are finalizing the beginning stages on completing more the stockpiling of more guns and ammunition as time goes on. The Air Force in 2019 completed the construction of 100 new CAF 13/78’s and 50 new CAF 36’s. The expansion of our military has been one of our top priorities and after the failure of the government of President Berrocal, we are finally making these dreams a reality.”
Applause begins again as the President pauses briefly before moving on to her next point.
“The growth in our healthcare field as well as in our military has only been compounded by our growth in the realm of education. For the first time in years, the number of Cojedan students who are attending universities has gone up nearly 8.5%. This has been a tremendous increase over previous years, with student number rising exponentially each year, leading up to this major increase this year. We are proud of this increase and proud of what has been accomplished in these universities and colleges. It was only earlier this week that the Co-Chairs of the Rosario Initiative announced that 20% of college tuition will be covered by the government beginning at the fall term. We are pleased that we have been able to accomplish this magnificent feat and will continue to support efforts to cut the cost of education so that every child has the right to pursue their own desires in life and can rise to the best of their abilities. The end goal is to the benefit of the Cojedan state and to our people to ensure that their dreams are realized and that they may attain the best life that we so desire for them. We will continue to work with our partners in the education field and collaborate with the Department of Education to continue to ensure this end goal.”
President Lacasa pauses for a minute before going on to her next topic. The whole room is eerily silent awaiting what she will say next.
“All of these things can only be compounded on by our strides in our nations economy. Due to our joint efforts, the Cojedan people are seeing more money in their paychecks than ever before. People are living at a higher level than they did five years ago, and people now have the capability to access to better paying jobs and better insurance benefits from these jobs. In the past year, the Cojedan economy has risen 3.5%, the highest increase since 2016 and our economy is projected to grow roughly 5.2% this coming year.”
The whole room is stirred to its feet with applause and shouting. The people respond greatly to the announcement of economic relief in the previous year.
“But this is only compounded by the results we have seen in unemployment. For the first time in nearly 3 decades, the number of people receiving unemployment benefits has fallen below 5% and has reached 4.28%, a near 1.2% drop compared to the previous year. It was only a few months ago that I signed legislation passed by the House and Senate raising the minimum wage in Cojedes to 9 pesos per hour. This has had dramatic effects on the lives of people across the nation and has given more people a chance to make it in this life. In the gallery tonight is Miguel Aparicio. Miguel is a single father who lives in San Luis. He has two sons and works sixteen to eighteen hours per day and has the help of his family to care for his children. He has said that his main goal is to ensure that his children have the ability to succeed in this world and have all that they need. When the minimum wage was raised to 9 pesos per hour, Miguel was able to leave his second job as his primary job had actually agreed to give him a raise even higher than what he was already making. Because of this, he has been able to work less hours to have more time to spend with his children and has the ability to make the same amount of money and maintain what he needs to survive. Miguel, I thank you for being a model Cojedan citizen and a person who strives to give his children the best life that they can possibly have.”
The room again erupts into applause and gives Miguel a standing ovation as he waves out to the crowd.
“But even with all these amazing feats that our country has accomplished in the past year, we must also realize that things have not always been easy in our great land. It was only a few weeks ago that we saw one of the worst terrorist attacks in our great land. The city of La Rioja was attacked during the middle of the day and the terrorist was killed by the bomb that he detonated. In total, 250 people died as a result of this senseless act of violence. A second person who was connected to the terrorist plot was arrested and will be tried in the next month. Joining us tonight in the gallery is Soledad Tejedor, a local bank worker who was injured when the bomb went off beside her building. Soledad immediately went into action and began to rescue those who she was able to. Because of her valiant efforts, nearly fifty people who could have potentially died were saved. Soledad, on behalf of the nation, we thank you for your valiant efforts. Tonight, it is my highest honor to award you the title Hero of the Republic.”
The room once again erupts in appluase as Soledad Tejedor is presented the award by Vice President Aitana Morterero and Vice President Antonia Navarro.
“If there is one thing that you take away from this speech tonight let it be this: the Cojedan people are among the most reselient people in the world. Our amount of support and caring for one another is only compounded on by the love we have in our faith and our country. Though we are not as advanced as many nations, we have come farther than many ever dreamed possible and it is all because of the efforts of the people of our nation and those who sit before us today. But we realize that none of this could be possible without the support of our allies, especially Goyanes and Andrenne. Without the support of these two nations, Cojedes would not be where it is today. I would also like to give special mention to our allies in Maloria, Syrixia, and Prydania for their continued support over the previous year. We greatly value our alliance with these countries and will continue to support them as well in the years to come. Members of the House and Senate, I want to thank you for allowing me to speak here tonight. Thank you for all you do for us. Thank you for continuing the great work you have done over the years. To the people of Cojedes, thank you for all you have done to keep our great nation going over the years. To the nurses and doctors, thank you for caring for us when we are sick. To those in the military, thank you for protecting us day and night and for your great sacrifice for our nation. And to those in whatever field you may be in, thank you all that you do for us. In conclusion, thank you everyone for making this country what it is. God bless you, God bless this assembly, and God Bless the Republic of Cojedes!”
The attendees rise to applause and cheer as the President wraps up her speech. The President smiles out upon the people and waves to them before shaking hands with the leaders of the Senate and House and walking down from the well of the house to shake hands with government officials all throughout the room. The applause continues even after President Lacasa has left the room. Following a moment of quiet, Speaker Estavez declares the National Assembly to be adjourned.
Members of the National Assembly have gathered in the famed halls of the capitol building for the State of the Republic Speech that is soon to be given by President Andrea Lacasa. Along with the members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, Justices of the Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court, along with the majority of members of the Cabinet of Secretaries have arrived and taken their seats. Behind the podium where the President will soon speak, Chairman of the Senate Nestor Estávez and Speaker of the House Catalina Jose Maria Estavez sit. As the members finally take their seats, the Sergaent at Arms appears to announce the arrival of the President.
Sergeant-At-Arms: “Madam Speaker, Mr. Chairman, the President of the Republic of Cojedes!”
The whole room erupts into cheers and applause. The President begins to make her way down the main row of the House while shaking hands with members on each side of the asile. After shaking hands with members for a long time, President Lacasa makes her way to the front row where she greets the Constitutional and Supreme Court Justices as well as the members of her cabinet. Finally, President Lacasa make her way up to the main podium and shakes hands with both the Chairman of the Senate and the Speaker of the House. She hands them copies of her speech which will soon begin. The Speaker then bangs her gavel three times.
Speaker of the House of Representatives: “Ladies and Gentlemen, the President of the Republic of Cojedes Andrea Lacasa!”
The room erupts into applause and shouting again. Members rise from their seats, as do the guests that are watching from the gallery. After a short time, the members sit down and the President begins her speech.
President Andrea Lacasa: “Madam Speaker, Mr. Chairman, members of the House and Senate, members of the Cabinet of Secretaries, Justices of the Constitutional and Supreme Courts, members of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, invited guests, and my fellow citizens: it is my deepest honor to stand here before you today to present my first State of the Republic Address. Our great Republic has been through many challenges over the past years. Every time, we have come out on top and we continue to do so to this day. Together, we have become a country united for the common cause of helping our fellow citizens and looking in on each other. These are values that our country has always hold true to our hearts and it is because of your work that we have come this far. Today, I stand before you amazed at the progress we have made in the past few months. We have had serious strides in the past year, from our economic growth to our recognition of the Andrennian and Gojan languages as minority languages in our Republic. One of the biggest successes of our country in the past few months was announced only a day ago. By the end of 2020, we will be fully self sufficient on oil and natural gas production! As part of this plans to increase of production of oil, we have begun the creation of a joint oil venture with the nation of Maloria. The new oil company, which will open within the coming months, will be called the Sol del Mayo-León Oil Company. This is just another way that Cojedes has opened its door to its allies in the previous year.”
The room erupts into applause and cheering again as members rise from their seats to applaud the announcement the President has just made.
“We are on the verge of several important deadlines and I want you all to know that our country is on track and we will meet these deadlines in the coming months and days. Our country has made major success in the medical industry and we have been pleased with our successes in the healthcare field. Tonight, joining us in the gallery is NICU RN Juanita Sarmienta. Sarmienta has been a nurse for the past ten years working in the PICU ward at Rosario Medical Center. She told me weeks ago that she has seen babies born that did not have functioning lungs, fully functional hearts, and numerous other deficits caused by premature birth. She also stated that of these children that she has taken care of that in recent years the number of cases actually leaving the hospital not resulting in death has risen tremendously. Nurse Sarmienta, I want to thank you tonight for your continuous service amongst those who do not always have a chance in this world. I want to thank you for all your valiant efforts in helping these babies have a name and a voice. Tonight, I am pleased to announce that after several weeks of discussion, the House and Senate have passed a bill allocating 20 billion pesos to aiding in PICU wards across the nation and Nurse Sarmienta, I tell you this night, it is all because of you!”
The whole room again erupts into applause to show their support for Nurse Juanita Sarmienta. Nurse Sarmienta begins to cry as the members applaud her and have announced their support for a 20 billion peso package for PICU equipment and training.
“Thank you Nurse Sarmienta for your valiant service. Also over the past year, we have made tremendous strides in rebuilding our military strength. Last year alone, we saw the formation of three new naval groups as well as the beginning of construction on the RCN Evita Arias and the RCN Mendoza. In the Army, we have completed building of new lines of tanks as well as new Armored Personnel Carriers, and we are finalizing the beginning stages on completing more the stockpiling of more guns and ammunition as time goes on. The Air Force in 2019 completed the construction of 100 new CAF 13/78’s and 50 new CAF 36’s. The expansion of our military has been one of our top priorities and after the failure of the government of President Berrocal, we are finally making these dreams a reality.”
Applause begins again as the President pauses briefly before moving on to her next point.
“The growth in our healthcare field as well as in our military has only been compounded by our growth in the realm of education. For the first time in years, the number of Cojedan students who are attending universities has gone up nearly 8.5%. This has been a tremendous increase over previous years, with student number rising exponentially each year, leading up to this major increase this year. We are proud of this increase and proud of what has been accomplished in these universities and colleges. It was only earlier this week that the Co-Chairs of the Rosario Initiative announced that 20% of college tuition will be covered by the government beginning at the fall term. We are pleased that we have been able to accomplish this magnificent feat and will continue to support efforts to cut the cost of education so that every child has the right to pursue their own desires in life and can rise to the best of their abilities. The end goal is to the benefit of the Cojedan state and to our people to ensure that their dreams are realized and that they may attain the best life that we so desire for them. We will continue to work with our partners in the education field and collaborate with the Department of Education to continue to ensure this end goal.”
President Lacasa pauses for a minute before going on to her next topic. The whole room is eerily silent awaiting what she will say next.
“All of these things can only be compounded on by our strides in our nations economy. Due to our joint efforts, the Cojedan people are seeing more money in their paychecks than ever before. People are living at a higher level than they did five years ago, and people now have the capability to access to better paying jobs and better insurance benefits from these jobs. In the past year, the Cojedan economy has risen 3.5%, the highest increase since 2016 and our economy is projected to grow roughly 5.2% this coming year.”
The whole room is stirred to its feet with applause and shouting. The people respond greatly to the announcement of economic relief in the previous year.
“But this is only compounded by the results we have seen in unemployment. For the first time in nearly 3 decades, the number of people receiving unemployment benefits has fallen below 5% and has reached 4.28%, a near 1.2% drop compared to the previous year. It was only a few months ago that I signed legislation passed by the House and Senate raising the minimum wage in Cojedes to 9 pesos per hour. This has had dramatic effects on the lives of people across the nation and has given more people a chance to make it in this life. In the gallery tonight is Miguel Aparicio. Miguel is a single father who lives in San Luis. He has two sons and works sixteen to eighteen hours per day and has the help of his family to care for his children. He has said that his main goal is to ensure that his children have the ability to succeed in this world and have all that they need. When the minimum wage was raised to 9 pesos per hour, Miguel was able to leave his second job as his primary job had actually agreed to give him a raise even higher than what he was already making. Because of this, he has been able to work less hours to have more time to spend with his children and has the ability to make the same amount of money and maintain what he needs to survive. Miguel, I thank you for being a model Cojedan citizen and a person who strives to give his children the best life that they can possibly have.”
The room again erupts into applause and gives Miguel a standing ovation as he waves out to the crowd.
“But even with all these amazing feats that our country has accomplished in the past year, we must also realize that things have not always been easy in our great land. It was only a few weeks ago that we saw one of the worst terrorist attacks in our great land. The city of La Rioja was attacked during the middle of the day and the terrorist was killed by the bomb that he detonated. In total, 250 people died as a result of this senseless act of violence. A second person who was connected to the terrorist plot was arrested and will be tried in the next month. Joining us tonight in the gallery is Soledad Tejedor, a local bank worker who was injured when the bomb went off beside her building. Soledad immediately went into action and began to rescue those who she was able to. Because of her valiant efforts, nearly fifty people who could have potentially died were saved. Soledad, on behalf of the nation, we thank you for your valiant efforts. Tonight, it is my highest honor to award you the title Hero of the Republic.”
The room once again erupts in appluase as Soledad Tejedor is presented the award by Vice President Aitana Morterero and Vice President Antonia Navarro.
“If there is one thing that you take away from this speech tonight let it be this: the Cojedan people are among the most reselient people in the world. Our amount of support and caring for one another is only compounded on by the love we have in our faith and our country. Though we are not as advanced as many nations, we have come farther than many ever dreamed possible and it is all because of the efforts of the people of our nation and those who sit before us today. But we realize that none of this could be possible without the support of our allies, especially Goyanes and Andrenne. Without the support of these two nations, Cojedes would not be where it is today. I would also like to give special mention to our allies in Maloria, Syrixia, and Prydania for their continued support over the previous year. We greatly value our alliance with these countries and will continue to support them as well in the years to come. Members of the House and Senate, I want to thank you for allowing me to speak here tonight. Thank you for all you do for us. Thank you for continuing the great work you have done over the years. To the people of Cojedes, thank you for all you have done to keep our great nation going over the years. To the nurses and doctors, thank you for caring for us when we are sick. To those in the military, thank you for protecting us day and night and for your great sacrifice for our nation. And to those in whatever field you may be in, thank you all that you do for us. In conclusion, thank you everyone for making this country what it is. God bless you, God bless this assembly, and God Bless the Republic of Cojedes!”
The attendees rise to applause and cheer as the President wraps up her speech. The President smiles out upon the people and waves to them before shaking hands with the leaders of the Senate and House and walking down from the well of the house to shake hands with government officials all throughout the room. The applause continues even after President Lacasa has left the room. Following a moment of quiet, Speaker Estavez declares the National Assembly to be adjourned.