Eurasia Press & News
It seems that the new authority in Syria has not yet succeeded in moving from a faction mentality to a state mentality. This problem is not an administrative detail, but a structural issue that touches the essence of state-building and its future. The state is not governed by loyalty relations, nor is it built with a mentality of victory, but is based on law, institutions, and efficiency.
In the early days of the so-called liberation of Syria, President al-Sharaa made it clear that the next stage should be a state phase rather than a revolution. That was widely welcomed. But the irony is that many Syrians today are nostalgic for the mentality of the first revolution, not because it was ideal, but because it raised a collective slogan. A slogan that says that the Syrian people are one, and that belonging to the homeland precedes any other affiliation.
What is happening today on the ground contradicts this discourse. The appointments in state institutions reflect a clear insistence on running the country with the faction mentality. Most ministries are led by people who are affiliated with one particular faction. The presence of a limited number of ministers from other denominations has not changed the picture. It seemed like trying to beautify the formality no more.
More seriously, some of these ministries have not been left to their natural legal management. The so-called political office was entered within it. This office is led by a sheikh affiliated with Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham. He decides. The minister is becoming a front. The decision is not made by the institution, but by the faction. Here the idea of the state is denied.
It didn’t stop at the ministries. Directors General. Sub-directors. Trade unions. Public relations officials. Most of them belong to the same faction. Many of them do not have any scientific qualifications or management experience. Some of them have never worked in public administration. The selection standard was not efficiency, but loyalty.
Even more shockingly, one of the current ministers does not hold any scientific qualification. His only history is that he was a former member of the Nusra Front. In any respectable country, public office is a responsibility. He needs knowledge and experience. In the new Syria, organizational affiliation seems to be sufficient.
The State Department is a stark example of this. This ministry represents the state abroad. You’re supposed to be the most professional. But recent appointments have revealed the scale of nepotism. The appointment of Syria’s permanent representative as an extraordinary ambassador has raised wide questions. This title in diplomatic norms is granted only after a long career. Mostly after more than twenty years of diplomatic work. Here he was given without this path.
Controversial appointments have not stopped there. The Foreign Ministry included the children and relatives of influential figures. Son of the Minister of Awqaf. Brother of one of the sheikhs of the Nusra Front. A third person is a jerk from another sheikh. No contest. No clear criteria. Only recommendations.
Even international engagements have not been spared from this approach. A delegation was sent to attend a scientific conference specialized in technology. The delegation included two sheikhs from the Muslim Brotherhood. Someone from the Nusra Front. And an X-ray doctor calculated on the new authority. None of them are technologists. The message was clear. Acting is not based on jurisdiction, but on belonging.
When this path is criticized, the charge is ready. You’re criticizing because you want a position. That’s a dangerous logic. Criticism is not a greed for power. Criticism in healthy countries is a national duty. Many Syrians do not want positions. They want a home. A country run by law. Not with the faction mentality.
Public office is not spoils. They are management tools. When placed in the hands of incompetents, they turn into demolition tools. The state doesn’t just lose its efficiency. You lose people’s trust. She loses her picture. She loses her future. That’s the most dangerous.
History is full of examples. Many countries have not fallen because of the wars. I fell for mismanagement. Because of the preference for loyalty over competence. Because of the exclusion of minds. When ministries are run with an organizational mindset, the state turns into an empty structure.
The modern state is based on the principle of merit. The right person in the right place. That’s not a moral slogan. That’s a survival requirement. When competent people are excluded, they migrate or remain silent. When the unqualified are empowered, errors accumulate. Over time, it becomes impossible to repair.
The problem today is not in a person or a name. The problem is the approach. In insisting on the reproduction of the experience of the faction within the state. If this approach continues, it will lead to one result. Losing the homeland. Not at once, but gradually.
Many Syrians are ready to give up positions. About the sites. about personal gains. In exchange for a real homeland. A country governed by laws. A country where the public service is a service, not a privilege. A country where one is not asked about one’s belonging, but about one’s competence.
That’s why this sound is louder today. Take positions and give us a home. Because if the country is lost, there will be no position left. There will be no faction left. Nothing will remain.
