Valruzia

[Aethan]

Interview with Valruzia's new Chancellor: Iwan Nowik

We talk with the newly elected third Chancellor of Valruzia: his ideas, his intentions, and much more

September 5660

Iwan Nowik outside the Sejm after he was confirmed as new Chancellor of Valruzia

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One month after his confirmation, we sit down with Iwan Nowik, the new Chancellor of Valruzia, and at 29, the youngest – his father, Szymon Nowik, was elected at 30 years of age – and the first communist to hold that office in the nation’s modern democratic history. Calm, methodical, and unexpectedly warm in person, Nowik greets us in his new office at the Chancellery with a cup of strong coffee and a firm handshake.

Q: Chancellor Nowik, you were elected after two turbulent elections and amid institutional deadlock. Do you feel your mandate is legitimate?

Nowik: Absolutely. The Communist Party won the largest share of votes in the last elections, and was basically tied with Sovereign Valruzia in the previous ones. That’s not a coincidence, but rather I believe that it is a call for change. People seem to be tired after 30 years of mandate from the same party, and they want change.  I ran to bring new politics, and that’s exactly what I intend to do.

Q: You formed a government thanks to an agreement with Sovereign Valruzia. But SW is not part of your cabinet. How stable is this arrangement?

Nowik: I would describe it as respectful and functional. Sovereign Valruzia has chosen to support the institutional framework – they preside over the Sejm and have committed to allowing the government to operate. We do not share the same vision, but we do share a sense of responsibility in that way.

Q: However, your predecessor, Chancellor Zuzanna Kosowska, resigned from the leadership of Sovereign Valruzia after calling your government "a betrayal of Valruzian democracy". She did not look so happy with the agreement reached. What is your response to her words?

Nowik: I will not engage in personal attacks. Ms. Kosowska has served this country for five years. Five years that we, as a responsible party, have allowed her to do so. And before her, it was the Communist Party as well the ones that let her party rule this nation, unselfishly and with a sense of responsibility. But seems like when the tables turn, the other way is not legitimate. If that's what she thinks, so be it, but do not treat our citizens as stupid. Valruzian democracy is not built on one person’s interpretation. It’s built on votes, representation, and legality. And my government stands on all three.

Q: What are your government’s top priorities for this term?

Nowik: First, we’ll launch a National Housing Plan to guarantee affordable housing for working families. Second, we’ll increase the minimum pension and boost regional investment, especially in eastern Valruzia. We will also introduce a maximum income law so that no citizen earns more than five times the median salary. We will propose to replace private landlords with state housing cooperatives, ban evictions, and redistribute unused land to working collectives. And we’re committed to free university education, with 100 VPOs per month as a student stipend.

Q: You also propose banning private healthcare providers and abolishing inheritance. Isn’t that controversial?

Nowik: Only if you believe profit should come before dignity. We will guarantee universal free medical care, not based on income or location. And inheritance? That’s the biggest factory of inequality we still tolerate. We want to replace it with a model of redistribution, so that all citizens start with the same rights and opportunities, not with the assets of their grandparents.

Q: Some critics, even from the left, say your programme is too ambitious. What do you say to them?

Nowik: I say they lack imagination. I come from Kampania, a region that was told for years it couldn’t change. And yet it did. Our model is clear, our budget is coherent, and our social contract is fair. We'll govern with results, and I bring my experience from being Marshall of the wonderful region of Kampania.

Q: Will Valruzia’s foreign policy change under your leadership? What do you think about the recent developments in Northern Seleya?

Nowik: Valruzia will remain a neutral country, firmly rooted in cooperation with all peaceful nations. But we will also raise our voice more clearly when it comes to workers' rights and sovereignty. As per the events in Northern Seleya, I assume you are talking about the recent events in Kalistan, as well as our relationship with other neighbours such as Likatonia, Tukarali and Gaduridos. I like to think about all of them as allies to Valruzia, and I will work towards continuing that pace. I will personally travel around north Seleya to look for new agreements and deals. Apart from that, I prefer not to comment about internal issues in third nations.

Q: Your father, Szymon Nowik, was Chancellor for two decades, and left a profound mark in how our nation is shaped today. Did he call you after your confirmation?

Nowik: [laughs] Of course he did. He told me: "Try to be better than me, and remember the great honor of the position you are holding". I carry his name, but I’m not here to repeat his legacy. I’m here to build my own, with a new generation of ideals and a deeper urgency.

Q: One of your more debated proposals is the removal of religion from public life. Can you clarify?

Nowik: Faith is private. The state is public. We will abolish religious symbols, teachings and messaging in public education and public broadcasting. I believe the state shall be as neutral as it can, in order to protect everyone. Statistics say more and more Valruzians every day become more irreligious, and the state shall be a reflection of that.

Q: Besides, it is said that while your party defends immigration more than others, it does so in your own terms. What does that mean? 

Nowik: It means we approach immigration from a materialist and rational perspective rather than from emotion. We defend the dignity and rights of all workers, regardless of their origin, but we also recognise that unregulated immigration under capitalism often becomes a tool to divide labour and depress wages. In regions like Kampania, for example, the focus has been on integration, protecting labour cohesion and ensuring equal access to housing, healthcare, and employment. That doesn't come from a xenophobic point of view. It comes from a strategy to avoid internal segmentation of the working class, which historically has led to exploitation and tensions. Our immigration policy is therefore based on planning, integration capacity, and economic justice. We believe in international solidarity, but solidarity must go hand in hand with structure. Otherwise, we risk turning equality into a promise no one can deliver.

Q: It has been said that the KPW also wants to lower the voting age to 16, to equal it with the working age. How do you explain that?

Nowik: Well, our nation is among the most educated nations in Terra. And thanks to my father, now all our generations have deep philosophy lessons and teachings, debates and discussions, since a very young age at schools. We have a deep mandatory training, and profound Constitutional teachings to our youngsters. With all that, if we allow our youngsters to work since they reach 16 – and that is something we will also work towards, ensuring better working and labor protection laws for these people – we make them pay taxes, we make them earn a salary, why shouldn't we allow them to have a say in the politics of our nation?

Q: A final message for the people, and maybe also for your critics?

Nowik: I know we may be provoking fear among the privileged. That’s expected. But to the workers, the students, the pensioners, the single mothers, the minorities – we are with you. We will shorten the workweek, control prices, and ensure public officials live as the people do. In standard housing, with public services. Our goal is simple: build a country to be proud of.

Q: What would you say to Valruzians unsure or afraid of what a communist chancellery means?

Nowik: I understand their concerns. They’ve heard decades of fearmongering. But look at our record in Kampania: more jobs, better schools, safer streets. We are not here to take from anyone. Besides, it's fundamental to remember the key role the KPW played during the early stages of the democratic transition. I believe that is also one of the key strengths of our party in Valruzia and why it is so popular: we have created a communism in our own shape and words, adapted to and for Valruzia.