I had been running the AFA for about 2 years, and was a member of the Kusari government, at which point I talked to the rest of the Kusari government (AKA the Kusari lawful and semi-lawful faction leaders) and asked them if they thought someone actually rping the Emperor was a good idea, and if they thought it was a good idea for me to rp it. Everyone seemed to think it was a decent idea so we went with it. My position is sorta like a social contract, I lead, but only as long as the people I am leading want me to lead them. My authority comes from the faction leaders support, and the players who want to push the rp along. I have no real power in terms of rules or anything like that.
But it should be clear, the Emperor is an indy, and I have always felt very strongly about it. I guess he is a lolwut.