The Kongo, a land of great wealth, and great opportunity. The only free African nation, and longtime advocate of human rights on the world stage, few could argue that the Kongo State wasn't everything its founders dreamed and more. Except...
The United Kongo Empire
Kinshasa, National Palace Prime Minister Augustin Matata Ponyo sat around a oval table in the main conference room of the National Palace. Several floors below him and now largely empty, the Senate Chamber slowly emptied of Senate officials. Elected from all around the Empire to serve it the unicameral legislature, they had just voted 169 to 131 in favor of Bill #E2392, the African-American Free Trade Pact (AAFTP). The bill ratified an earlier agreement between President Kablia and his counterpart in the USAS, opening the doors to tariff free trade between the two nations. Surprisingly, the bill met fierce resistance from the minority Conservative Democratic Front (( The UKE's Right Wing Party/Coalition )), many of whom insisted that the bill wasn't beneficial enough to the Kongo Empire. Many Senate officials, he suspected, were still annoyed that President Kabila had agreed to provide joint funding for the Large Hadron Collider without first ensuring it be built in the Kongo. That made them less keen to give anymore ground to the USAS. After all, they all had elections to face next year.
Regardless, the first order of business in this meeting was for him to sign the Bill, pushing it forward in the process to becoming a law. Next, it would need the signatures of the Mulopwe (King), and the President himself (since it was related to international matters) once he returned from Rome.
He signed Bill E#2392, placing it in the manila folder next to him before looking up expectantly at his ministers.
"Next?" he asked.
"Sir," began the Minister of Industry, "several representatives from the mining industry have logged official complaints over the Greater Kongo Environmental Act. They request-"
"No." he cut in, rubbing his temples. He remembered that Act, Bill #E2219. 150-148. That damned bill almost tore his own party apart. Nearly 2000 pages of regulations, guidelines, and lobbyist bull crap. The document was a bureaucratic nightmare. Since its passage, growth in several industries had been constricted, with other companies poked loopholes and escaped the regulations all together. Worse still, several scandals had erupted when a few companies even went so far as to try and bribe inspectors. The law had been put up for revaluation by the Mulopwe's order, meaning the Legislature had to redraft and reapprove it. It was not due to be heard for several weeks, yet half the lobbyists in existence had begun swarming the Legislature and Senate officials, each one attempting to get their own clause in.
He sighed. It would be a long day. "My apologies," he told the offended ministry official. The Minister of Industry was stressed too. "Continue."
Rome, Enroute To Summit President Kablia was in a good mood. The flight from Kinshasa on the Kongo Air Concorde had been smooth and had even arrived an hour earlier then expected. He'd also managed to get a mountain of work done on the flight here, and personally, was running ahead of schedule. He checked his watch, thousands of miles away, the Kongolese Ambassador to the USAS should be on his way to appear at the ceremonial opening of the LHC. He'd talked to the man just minutes ago, making sure everything was set to represent the Empire in his absence. The only slight nagging annoyance, he realized, was the one sleeping just to his left.
He glanced at the Kinada (Prince) Mamadou. The Prince sat adorned in regal splendor, wearing a ceremonial Dashiki colored in various shades of blue. He had left his crown in Kongo, and instead wore a simple knitted cap, emblazoned with the jaguar crest of the Empire.
President Kablia had grown used to handling diplomatic business by himself, or at least, as the senior ranking person there. He was, after all,
President. But this time, the Mulopwe had requested Kinda Mamadou accompany him. The reason was, "to provide Kinda Mamadou with experience in worldly affairs". President Kablia agreed, he would need it someday if he was to be Mulopwe himself, but that didn't mean
he wanted to have to baby sit the 17 year old.
Still, Mamadou was likable, and President Kablia had grown to like him.
Senate Complex
World Leaders Summit Two black limousines bearing the Kongo Empire flag arrived outside the Summit headquarters. As staff moved to help the new arrivals out of their respective cars, President Joseph Kablia and Mamadou Lumumba, son of the Mulopwe (King) of Kongo, emerged. After speaking briefly with Mamadou, the two entered together waving and smiling as they entered the building. They stopped to greet their hosts and shake hands, before the duo disappeared inside.
Minutes later, they entered the chamber, taking their seats at the place reserved for the Kongo Empire. President Kablia turned to whisper to the young Prince.
"I'm going to go check on our office and get some staff set up in there. Do you wish to wait here until I return your Excellency?"
The young prince nodded, marveling at the architecture in the room. President Kablia nodded, rising to walk out of the room to go and see their assigned office. The Kongo Empire had arrived.