Howard Prince-Gonzalez
| Howard Prince-Gonzalez | |
|---|---|
 | |
| 1st President Of Slokais | |
| In office January 2nd, 1893 – January 2nd, 1899 | |
| Succeeded by | Henry Banks |
| 1st Leader of the Left Party | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | April 6, 1858 San Fernando |
| Died | May 7, 1928 San Fernando |
| Cause of death | Natural Causes |
| Resting place | Grand Bank National Cemetary |
| Political party | The Left Party |
| Spouse(s) | Emma Gonzalez |
| Children | Alan Gonzalez, Martha Gonzalez, Alexander Gonzalez |
| Mother | Harriet Prince |
| Father | Mitchell Gonzalez |
| Residence | 1345, New Land RD |
| Alma mater | New Liverpool College |
Early Life and Career
Howard Cremescia Prince-Gonzalez was born April 6th, 1858 in San Fernando. His father was a simple groundskeeper of Mesizto ancestry and his mother was an heiress of Costeno ancestry. In addition, Gonzalez's grandmother was a Damersara women named Maria Dioup-Prince who was enslaved in modern-day Kolda. Gonzalez attended a local Catholic preparatory school, Saint Mark's funded by the Prince estate. Gonzalez was regarded as a exceptional student by his teachers and peers, as he began writing poems and books at the age of 14. In 1876 he attended New Liverpool University, as a political studies major. In 1878, he was arrested for writing pieces in a student newspaper called "Los Plebeyos". He was then jailed and sentenced to 15 years in prison. Gonzalez was sent to Rio Bravos Prison, where he ended up interacting with several other independence leaders such as Thomas Rizal and Francisco Vegas but got out in 6 years due to good behavior and a good early release appeal.
Indpendence Era
Gonzalez maintained a low profile during the early 1880s, as he feared if arrested again he would be executed. Despite this, Gonzalez wrote dozens of essay's on the Slokasian identity, a new concept at the time. Gonzalez argued despite the extreme division of those living in the region, more united the citizens then not. Gonzalez proposed a strong central government, with a representative democratic system which provided for all citizens. These writings where released in 1885 as the "Reflections of a Slokasian Man" under the simple name of "Citizen". Reflections was distributed within independence circles before seeing a wider release, with Gonzalez being adamant about the book being sent to "every corner, in every language, in the hands of every man". The book saw extreme success as its language and writing was unique for the time and was one of the first examples of "Republikisan". Gonzalez eventually met several other's leaders at the 1887 Conference of the Republican-Left Association. Upon hearing of this, Gonzalez was elevated to the Assistant Secretary of the RLA where he began to speak publicly as the author of Reflections.
Gonzalez would end up going on a nationwide tour of Slokais, with large crowds meeting him in every city. Attempts to arrest Gonzalez remained futile as he often left area's before he could be arrested. This grew Gonzalez to a folk hero status across ethnic and religious lines as he toured the country. In 1888, Gonzalez was elected General Secretary of the RLA despite opposition from Henry Banks, who was a popular figure in his own right. In 1890, when the First Slokasian Civil War broke out within the dominion, Gonzalez denounced retaliatory attacks against Sactarian settlers and instead shifted opposition towards just colonial officials who soon became extremely outnumbered in many instances. Gonzalez stated in 1891, "The greatest ill of our occupation is how they turn brother's and cousins, we all swelter under the heat of one sun, and are cooled by the water's of one ocean".
Presdident of Slokais Islands
In 1892 the government was set up and an election was held, He got 87% of the vote with only a small opposition from the Conservative Party. The election saw a very low turnout as voting was only legal to people over age 21 and who owned property, many areas saw almost no turnout, while others saw high amounts, some provinces could not get the proper ballots so local races were often decided by a vote of the new House. Meaning most local positions were Left Party-supported. Realizing this Gonzalez re-wrote the constitution in 1894 and established the basis of modern political thought in what is known as The Reformed Revolution. In 1895, during the Northern Isles Tax Rebellion, Gonzalez personally took control of the situation by traveling to the region and commanding military forces. Gonzalez is elected to a second term and is very popular as the land-owner requirement is removed and he gets 77% of the vote. The Left continued its appeal in rural areas with gains for the Center Party in urban areas.
Legacy
In 1900, Gonzalez decided not to run as he thought, it would not be needed, as he had done so much for the country. In 1904, he started the Howard Prince-Gonzalez Institution. The HPGI was founded with the goal to promote problem-solving and monitor electoral and political activities internationally. Gonzalez also traveled to various countries supporting various political movements. In 1926 he died of natural causes at his estate in San Fernando. The home is now a popular historical site within San Fernando. He is the most popular politician in Slokasian history, with an 85% approval rating.
Policy
Howard Prince-Gonzalez is credited as the founder of modern Slokais and for creating a style of populist, modernization policy that had been replicated by many Presidents across the political spectrum. This has been called Howardism, and multiple leaders including Joseph Chavez have publicly stated they support the ideology. The main primary criticism is that Gonzalez was too focused on overarching ideals to address class and racial divides. There is a debate about where politically was Gonzalez aligned with some claiming he would have supported modern Conservatism, while others have described him as a social democrat.