CHAPTER 24
PUBLIC ADMINISTRATION AND CIVIL SERVICE
Article 155 — Constitutional Principles of Public Administration
Public administration shall be lawful, professional, politically impartial, transparent, efficient, digitally accessible, and accountable.
Civil servants serve the Republic, the Constitution, and the public interest — not any party, faction, official, or informal power structure.
Public administration shall not be organized as an instrument of party domination, personal patronage, clan control, or private enrichment.
The state shall maintain a professional, merit-based, and politically neutral civil service as a constitutional precondition of democratic government and effective public administration.
Article 155a — Independent Civil Service Commission
An Independent Civil Service Commission (CSC) shall be established by constitutional law as an autonomous constitutional institution to administer the merit system, protect civil service integrity, and enforce political neutrality throughout public administration.
The CSC shall consist of seven (7) members: a) two (2) members elected by the Lower House by an absolute majority — seventy-six (76) of one hundred fifty (150) deputies — from a list of candidates nominated by civil society organizations and professional associations through a transparent public process established by constitutional law; b) two (2) members elected by the Upper House by an absolute majority — eleven (11) of twenty (20) senators — under the same nomination procedure; c) two (2) members appointed by the Judicial Council of the Republic from among former judges or persons with at least fifteen (15) years of distinguished legal or administrative experience; d) one (1) member appointed by the Ombudsman.
Members shall serve a single non-renewable term of six (6) years, staggered so that no more than three (3) members are replaced in any two-year period. Active party members, elected officials, and persons who held elected office or party leadership within five (5) years of appointment are ineligible. Members may be removed only for incapacity or final criminal conviction.
The CSC shall be funded directly from the state budget at a level established by constitutional law. This budget may not be reduced below the preceding year’s level in real terms without a two-thirds majority vote of the Lower House. No ministry may control the CSC’s operational expenditure.
The CSC shall have power to: a) establish, supervise, and audit competitive selection and promotion procedures throughout the civil service; b) investigate complaints of political patronage, nepotism, arbitrary dismissal, and discrimination in public employment; c) issue binding corrective orders including reinstatement, promotion reversal, compensation, and disciplinary referral; d) issue binding standards and guidance on civil service procedures for all ministries and public bodies; e) conduct annual random audits of at least ten percent (10%) of civil service appointments made in the preceding year; audit findings shall be published within ninety (90) days of the end of each calendar year; f) publish an annual report on the state of the civil service, including statistics on recruitment, appeals, political-neutrality violations, and disciplinary proceedings.
Decisions of the CSC shall be subject to expedited judicial review. Administrative courts shall have authority to order immediate reinstatement on full pay pending final determination where a civil servant has been unlawfully dismissed or demoted.
Article 156 — Merit-Based Civil Service
Appointment, promotion, and dismissal in the civil service shall be based on merit, competence, integrity, and lawful procedure.
Every civil service vacancy shall be publicly announced with the full job description, required qualifications, and selection criteria before the competition opens. All applications, scores, and selection decisions shall be accessible to candidates who request them.
Constitutional law shall establish comprehensive protections against political patronage, arbitrary dismissal, and corruption in public administration.
Public office shall not be used for private advantage. A civil servant who uses official resources, information, or authority for personal enrichment or the enrichment of connected persons commits a civil service integrity offense subject to discipline and criminal prosecution.
Article 156a — Competitive Recruitment and Promotion
Entry into the civil service shall be by open public competition administered by or under the direct supervision of the CSC. Promotion to higher grades shall be by competition open to external candidates unless constitutional law defines narrow exceptions for internal-only competitions, which shall still require objective merit criteria and CSC supervision.
Selection shall be based exclusively on objective criteria: examination results, qualifications, relevant experience, demonstrated competence, and integrity assessment. Preference based on political affiliation, family connection, regional origin, ethnicity, religion, or political donation is prohibited.
The result of each competition — including the names of all shortlisted candidates, their scores, and the reasons for selection of the successful candidate — shall be published on the official civil service portal within seven (7) days of the decision.
A candidate who is not selected may request a written statement of reasons within seven (7) days of the published result. The candidate may appeal to the CSC within thirty (30) days of receiving reasons; the CSC shall decide within forty-five (45) days. The CSC’s decision may be challenged before an administrative court within thirty (30) days; the court shall decide within sixty (60) days.
Any appointment established to have been made on prohibited grounds is void. The official responsible for the appointment is subject to discipline under Article 157b and criminal prosecution.
The CSC shall maintain a public register of all civil service competitions, results, and appeals, updated within seven (7) days of each relevant event.
Article 156b — Political Neutrality
Civil servants shall be politically neutral in the exercise of their official duties. They shall serve every lawfully constituted Government with equal loyalty and competence, irrespective of which party holds office.
Civil servants may not: a) use official time, resources, or authority to support or oppose a political party, candidate, or referendum campaign; b) issue, prepare, sign, or execute official documents or decisions designed to benefit a political actor rather than the public interest; c) accept from a minister, superior, or party official an instruction to act unlawfully, to favor partisan interests, or to produce politically motivated administrative output.
A minister or superior who gives a civil servant an unlawful or politically motivated instruction shall commit it to writing if the civil servant requests it. A civil servant who receives such an instruction shall: a) notify their immediate supervisor in writing; where that supervisor is the source of the instruction, the civil servant shall notify the CSC directly; b) be entitled to refuse the instruction without disciplinary consequence; c) be protected from retaliation under Article 156d.
This Article does not prevent civil servants from holding private political opinions, voting in elections, or participating in civic life outside their official duties, provided such activity does not compromise the impartiality of their official functions as established by constitutional law.
Article 156c — Asset Disclosure and Conflicts of Interest
Civil servants holding positions designated by constitutional law as senior or involving access to public funds, procurement, or regulatory authority shall publicly disclose their assets, liabilities, income, business interests, and the financial interests of their immediate family members within sixty (60) days of appointment and annually thereafter within thirty (30) days of the end of each calendar year. Disclosures shall be published on the official civil service transparency portal within seven (7) days of receipt.
A civil servant who has a personal financial interest — or whose immediate family member has a financial interest — in a matter before them shall immediately recuse themselves in writing, notify their supervisor, and refer the matter to a designated officer. Failure to recuse constitutes a disciplinary offense and may constitute a criminal offense under applicable law.
The CSC and the independent anti-corruption body shall jointly monitor compliance with this Article. They may order independent audits, asset verification, and unexplained enrichment investigations where credible evidence exists.
A civil servant who leaves a senior position may not accept private employment with entities directly regulated or contracted by the state during their last two (2) years of service for a period of two (2) years after departure. The anti-corruption body shall enforce this restriction. Violations are subject to financial penalties and disgorgement of unlawfully obtained income, enforceable by the anti-corruption body with judicial oversight.
Article 156d — Whistleblower Protection
A civil servant who in good faith reports to the CSC, the Ombudsman, the anti-corruption body, the Prosecutor General, the parliamentary oversight committee, or a competent court: a) corruption, abuse of office, or misappropriation of public funds; b) a manifestly unlawful instruction received from a superior; c) systematic violation of civil service law or constitutional principles; shall be protected from dismissal, demotion, transfer, harassment, salary reduction, adverse performance assessment, or any other form of retaliation for a period of not less than three (3) years following the date of the report.
Any adverse employment action taken against a protected whistleblower within the three-year protection period is presumed retaliatory. The burden of disproving retaliation rests on the employer.
A civil servant subject to a retaliatory action may apply to the CSC or an administrative court for immediate interim reinstatement. The CSC or court shall decide within forty-eight (48) hours of application whether to order reinstatement on full pay pending final determination.
A public official who retaliates against a whistleblower commits a criminal offense. The CSC shall refer credible evidence of retaliation to the Prosecutor General within seven (7) days. The Prosecutor General shall decide on initiating proceedings within thirty (30) days and shall give written reasons if declining.
Good faith reports that prove factually incorrect shall not result in disciplinary action unless the civil servant knowingly made a false report.
Article 156e — Disciplinary Procedure and Appeals
Disciplinary proceedings against a civil servant shall: a) be initiated only on grounds expressly established by constitutional law; b) provide the civil servant with advance written notice of the specific charges and access to all evidence relied upon; c) allow the civil servant to be represented by a lawyer or trade union representative; d) be conducted by a disciplinary panel independent from the official who initiated the proceedings; e) be concluded within ninety (90) days of initiation, save where proceedings are directly connected to pending criminal proceedings, in which case they may be suspended until the criminal proceedings conclude.
A civil servant facing criminal proceedings may be temporarily suspended on full pay pending the outcome. Suspension without pay before final criminal conviction requires a judicial order issued on stated grounds.
Any disciplinary decision may be appealed to the CSC within thirty (30) days of notification; the CSC shall decide within sixty (60) days. The CSC’s decision may be challenged before an administrative court within thirty (30) days; the court shall decide within sixty (60) days.
Dismissal for political opinion, political affiliation, the exercise of constitutional rights, whistleblowing, or trade union membership is void. A civil servant unlawfully dismissed is entitled to immediate reinstatement and full compensation for all lost remuneration.
Disciplinary penalties shall be proportionate to the violation. Dismissal and disqualification from public service shall be reserved for grave misconduct, corruption, or wilful breach of constitutional duty.
Article 157 — Equal Access to Public Service
Citizens have equal access to public service on the basis of merit and law.
No person shall be excluded from public service on discriminatory grounds, including ethnicity, religion, language, sex, disability, regional origin, or political opinion, except where the nature of the office requires specific qualifications or neutrality obligations established by this Constitution or constitutional law.
Requirements for public office shall be objective, proportionate, and related to the functions of the office. Any eligibility requirement that is discriminatory in purpose or effect may be challenged before the CSC and the courts.
Article 157a — Senior Civil Service
Constitutional law shall define a senior civil service category covering positions of significant administrative responsibility, authority over public funds, or influence over policy implementation.
Appointment to the senior civil service shall require a rigorous competitive process supervised by the CSC. The CSC shall publicly evaluate and rank all candidates and publish the evaluation before final appointment. The appointing minister may select only from the top three (3) ranked candidates.
Senior civil servants shall be subject to enhanced asset disclosure, conflict-of-interest restrictions, and the two-year post-service employment restriction under Article 156c.
Political appointees — ministers, deputy ministers, and political advisers — are institutionally distinct from the senior civil service. The number and authorized functions of political appointees in each ministry shall be established by constitutional law. Political appointees may not perform functions assigned by constitutional law to permanent civil servants, and may not participate in civil service selection, promotion, or discipline decisions.
Article 157b — Sanctions for Political Interference in the Civil Service
Any minister, officeholder, or political figure who: a) appoints, promotes, dismisses, or transfers a civil servant for political, personal, or corrupt reasons in violation of the procedures of this Chapter; b) issues an instruction to a civil servant to take an unlawful act or to produce politically motivated administrative output; c) retaliates or enables retaliation against a civil servant who has reported a violation; d) fabricates, alters, or suppresses civil service records for political purposes; commits a constitutional violation and a criminal offense.
The CSC shall refer credible evidence of such violations to the Prosecutor General within fourteen (14) days. The Prosecutor General shall decide on initiating proceedings within thirty (30) days and shall provide written reasons if declining to proceed.
A minister or public official finally convicted of civil service interference shall be removed from office immediately, disqualified from public service for the period established by law, and subject to full criminal penalties.