Sarnaj Tsetseg

Sarnaj Tsetseg
Sarnaj in 2008
5th Prime Minister of Catam Pon (Appellation)
In office 4 May 1988 – 8 May 1996
Preceded by	Tzorigtoj Áv
Succeeded by	Tsolmon Erdéne
MP for Central Keoje
In office 3 March 1968 – 3 May 1988
Preceded by	Teling Jacrani
Succeeded by	Kin Tajni
Personal details
Born	8 February 1941 Poba district, Catam Province, Catam Protectorate
Nationality	Catamese
Political party	People’s Party
Spouse	Karté Mon-Tsetseg
Children	5
Alma mater	Cixato University
Profession	Politician Civil Law Journalism

Sarnaj Tsetseg (ipa: säʀnäj t͡sʰet͡sʰek; Catamese: 𐐝𐐪𐑉𐑍𐐴 𐐞𐐯𐑆𐐯𐑀) was the fifth prime minister of Catam Pon, known for managing the country through the early stages of the Catamese Asset Bubble Crash of the late 80s and into the 90s. Some of his actions have been criticized as relatively corrupt, including the pardoning of many major business leaders before then proceeding to champion pro-vapol deals, including a nuclear energy contract with the city of Opposh (in Makko Oko), and loosening laws preventing the conglomerates from owning financial services companies.

However, despite his contribution to government-Vapol collusion, he has been praised for helping the country get through the crisis, oftentimes by continuing the stronghanded practices if his predecessor. As well, prior to his appointment as prime minister, he was the country's Deputy Prime Minister, where he advocated for the Medisave, a savings scheme that allows Catamese citizens to set aside part of their income into a Medisave account to meet future medical expenses. Sarnaj also advocated for the Edusave Awards, a monetary reward for students who did well in school based on either their academic achievements or character to enshrine meritocracy. This push towards meritocracy also, in the long run, helped to change how the vapols were run, moving them ever so slightly away from their earlier family-run ways.

Political Views

National Democracy

Sarnaj long considered himself a national democrat, having first joined the youth wing of the People's Party at the age of 16, in 1957, where he quickly rose up the ranks with age. By the age of 21, after graduating college, he went on to lead the entirety of the newly formed Keoje province's People's Party chapter, leading the party in the region for many years while also being a member of parliament, where he and his education gained the respect of Prime Minister Tzorigtoj Áv.

He remained a committed national democrat and still is a member of the People's Party, but has fluctuated his views on the economy and how much the state should "guide" it throughout the years.

Meritocracy

Sarnaj is a staunch supporter of a meritocratic system of both governance and corporations, and during his 6-year reign as prime minister, he saw to it that students, educators, and businesses who acted accordingly and achieved high standing would receive government awards and subsidies. A result of this was the Edusave program, which reimbursed students who performed particularly well in certain key subjects. Similar programs were set up for vapols to encourage a move away from their traditional family rule and towards a more professional and technocratic system, something he deemed as being more in-line with meritocracy.

Vapols

One of his most controversial moves was pardoning various chairmen of the vapols who had been sentenced in response to the Catamese economic collapse of the late 1980s and early 90s. In addition to this, he openly believed the vapols were the key to growing the Catamese economy, and used this to justify massive government subsidization as a means of relieving a select few vapols from the effects of the collapse.

During his tenure, police were repeatedly mobilized to tackle trade unionists, protestors, and strikes as a means to prevent economic activity from stalling any further.

Minority representation

Perhaps his most popular act as prime minister, which had been in the works already under Tzorigtoj, Sarnaj made sure to guarantee the representation of various ethnic minorities in government, and attempted to expand this over to the private sector, with little effect.

Legacy

As Prime Minister, Sarnaj promised a more open-minded and consultative style of leadership than that of his predecessor. This greater openness extended also to the socio-economic spheres of life, for instance, in his support for the rise of "little bohemias" in many major cities, enclaves where more creativity and entrepreneurship could thrive.

However, even though he helped to open up parliament even more for minorities and non-constituent (opposition) parties, the legacy of his regime is still wrought with the close collusion between the state and the vapols.