The Ministry of the Interior was the largest department in the Cabinet, combining public security, administration, local governance, elections, household registration, public health, and social control under one roof.
Its authority was enormous.
Household registration was only one part of the Ministry of the Interior’s responsibilities, but it was also an extremely important one, because it involved controlling information about the country’s population and its movements.
Yet despite the importance of the work, the actual data was chaotic, fragmented, inaccurate, and badly outdated.
On paper, every census appeared highly precise.
In reality, the government knew almost nothing about real-time population movements.
It did not know exactly how many people had entered or left different regions, where everyone currently lived, or what occupations they had.
This directly affected the efficiency of elections, conscription, public security, and taxation.
How could such a system continue functioning?
There was also the question of servants and laborers living on the estates of noble landowners.
Many of them had probably never been properly registered at all.
These problems were largely caused by the administrative structure itself.
Municipalities controlled population registration, while the Cabinet lacked a unified department responsible for managing demographic data.
Across more than 8,300 municipalities, registration formats differed, as did the level of detail recorded.
Umberto had no intention of abolishing municipal autonomy or local elections, but he wanted to ensure that mayors and local departments actually carried out the Cabinet’s policies.
Population registration and land reform would be the first steps in extending central administrative oversight into municipal governance.
Looking at the exhausted Silvano Berti, Umberto asked with concern, “The Ministry of the Interior has a huge workload.
Have you managed to sort everything out over the past few days?” Silvano Berti rubbed his nose and said, “Your Highness, I can describe it in only one sentence: my head is spinning.
The workload is far greater than it was when I worked at the municipal level.” “Your Highness, I’m not even forty yet.
I honestly don’t know how those old fellows managed to endure this for so many years.” “Hahaha.” Umberto could see that Berti was genuinely trying his best to familiarize himself with the work.
In reality, a minister’s responsibilities mainly involved coordination and setting the overall direction of the department.
But since all of them were newcomers, they first needed to understand the details before they could properly manage the work.
“The Cabinet’s administrative and technical civil servants have worked in these departments for years.
They are familiar with how everything operates.
You need to learn how to make proper use of people.
“It’s understandable that you have to do more yourself in the beginning, but later on, you cannot handle everything personally.
If you try, your body won’t be able to take it.” “I called you here because there is one matter that needs to be prepared in advance.” “Your Highness, is it about household registration?” Berti was meticulous and had already guessed it from Umberto’s discussions over the past two days.
His Highness liked to understand the full picture before taking action, so reforming household registration was inevitable.
“You haven’t completely lost your mind from overwork yet.” Knowing that Berti had not prepared a specific proposal, Umberto simply assigned the task directly.
“Carry out a standardized reform of civil registration and household registration management.
Establish unified registration standards and reporting formats.
“Have your people draft the specific regulations, and I will approve the final version.
“After the reform, civil and household registration will fall under provincial-level supervision.
“The provinces will regularly report their data to the Ministry of the Interior and will be responsible for issuing household registration books and identification cards.
“Municipal civil-registration offices will be responsible for helping citizens apply for documents, recording household information, and reporting changes upward.
“The country will adopt a system of one registration book per household and one identification card per person.
“At the same time, the Ministry of the Interior must establish a strict penalty system.
“Without a household registration card or household book, a person will not be able to exercise certain rights or obtain certain services, including voting, relief benefits, employment permits, passports, and legal marriage registration.” “Your Highness, won’t this be too large a move?” Silvano Berti frowned.
“We have only just taken control of the Cabinet, and the provincial governors have not yet been replaced.
There will certainly be resistance during implementation.
“This involves not only local administrations, but also the Church.” Silvano Berti was worried that moving too quickly would create unnecessary chaos.
“What is there to be afraid of?
I will deal with whatever problems arise.” Umberto was not particularly concerned about political pressure.
As long as opposition openly emerged, he would deal with it.
Once the situation stabilized, he intended to carry out broader administrative reforms to balance the authority of the provinces and municipalities and prevent either side from accumulating too much power.
“Organize the necessary personnel and formulate a plan as soon as possible.
“When the land reform begins, send officials to the various municipalities at the same time to supervise local registration work.
“If people are denied both household registration documents and access to land, let’s see whether the local authorities will still dare to obstruct the process once the population becomes angry.” “Also, I don’t want to keep hearing about difficulties.” Hearing the dissatisfaction in Umberto’s voice, Silvano Berti immediately corrected his attitude.
“Rest assured, Your Highness.
It will be carried out immediately.” “Good.
That’s the attitude needed to get things done.” Umberto was not worried about their abilities.
What he feared was that once they reached high positions, they would lose the drive and determination they had shown during their days in New Rome City.
“The provincial governors are nominated by the Minister of the Interior, appointed by the King, and responsible to the central government rather than to local authorities.
“Regardless of what political faction they belong to, you must establish strict standards.
“Any governor who refuses to implement central government policy should be replaced immediately.” “In the future, both administrative civil servants and technical civil servants will enter government departments through examinations and professional training.
“This is necessary to ensure neutrality, reduce partisan influence, and prevent nepotism.” Administrative civil servants could currently obtain positions through personal connections, while entry requirements were relatively low.
Technical civil servants, however, held specialized positions that required academic qualifications and professional knowledge.
“In the future, once technical civil servants reach a certain rank, they should be given a choice.
“For those willing to accept transfers and administrative rotations, promotion channels should be opened to them.
“Although the Ministry of the Interior is primarily responsible for personnel administration, this policy should still be drafted by your ministry, approved by me, and then issued to all government departments for implementation.
“Furthermore, civil-service examinations will be centrally organized and administered by the Ministry of the Interior, while the relevant departments will be responsible for providing examination questions and qualified examiners.” Umberto wanted to establish a civil-service examination system to gradually eliminate appointments based purely on recommendations, favoritism, and personal connections.
“Very well, Your Highness.
I will establish a dedicated department to handle civil-service affairs.” Berti had just gained another major responsibility—and more authority along with it.
He was secretly pleased.
Umberto nodded slightly.
“Also, you must reorganize the police system as quickly as possible to provide security for the reforms.
“The Carabinieri have already been reinforced, so there should not be any major problems on that side.” The provincial police had performed disappointingly during the crisis and had been heavily infiltrated.
After the Fascists failed, some officers had immediately changed sides.
Such people could not remain in government service.
Their convictions were too weak, and they were far too opportunistic.
“If there are not enough suitable reserve personnel, recruit retired soldiers to strengthen the police forces.
“Once the situation stabilizes, I will carry out a comprehensive reform of the entire police system and clarify its responsibilities.
“If necessary, the police system will establish a separate national department responsible for coordinating police forces throughout the country.
“The police should also establish specialized academies to train professional officers and ensure the safety and interests of the public.” “Understood.
I will recruit retired officers and soldiers from both the Security Battalion and the regular Army, half from each, to ensure discipline and execution.” Berti naturally prioritized veterans of the Security Battalion, since their loyalty and ability had already been tested.
The training standards of the Security Battalion were considerably higher than those of ordinary Army units.
“Hmm.
Don’t worry about the funding.
“Submit the necessary reports directly to me, and I will approve them.” Umberto was short of money, but he would not be stingy with investments that guaranteed the success of his reforms.
With the police and the Carabinieri standing behind the officials implementing land reform, who would dare act recklessly?