The role of the civil service council in reforming the Lebanese bureaucracy

Abstract

Like other developed countries, the Lebanese bureaucracy is severely criticized not only by developed countries but also by the Lebanese citizens. Most if not all the Lebanese bureaucrats are not serving the public in the correct and proper way. This state of affairs created a big gap between the citizens on one side and the bureaucrats on the other. The citizens complain about the bureaucrats as being lazy, corrupt, ignorant, and unwilling to serve the public. Throughout the independence period several attempts were made to reform the Lebanese bureaucracy and adapt it to the changing conditions in the country. Naturally these attempts differed in terms of their scope, objectives, and impact on the administration. Out of many administrative reforms, the most serious one occurred during the Presidency of Fouad Chehab. During that period President Chehab launched his ambitious administrative reform program which was the most serious and comprehensive attempt of its kind in the history of independent Lebanon. One of the main characteristics of the Chehabi reform program was the establishment of a central Civil Service Council which was entrusted with the main responsibility for all human resource matters throughout the Lebanese administration. During the Presidency of Fouad Chehab and Charles Helou, the Civil Service Council played an important role in upgrading the performance level of the bureaucrats. Later on, this same institution was considered as a real threat to traditional politicians who started fighting it through different means. The Council faced different kinds of problems and obstacles such as internal interference, external pressures, lack of political support etc ... All these problems and obstacles played a major role in weakening the Council's role, in upgrading the human resource level and be a vital instrument in administrative reform.