“Customs need reform before stuffing with employees”… This is what the head of “Information International,” Jawad Adra, wrote on his “X” platform account. This tweet sparked widespread controversy, so what’s the story?
Information International published a detailed report on the customs issue. According to the report, four years ago, political-governmental-sectarian debate flared up over the appointment of Lebanese customs officers. The government resolved it in July 2020 by adopting sectarian balance between Muslims and Christians at the expense of competence, which prompted some of the successful Muslim candidates who were denied their right to the job to resort to the State Council.
The council issued its decision in March 2023, nullifying the government and the Supreme Customs Council’s decision and appointing the petitioners. As a result, this issue returned to the forefront of discussion with the government heading in its session on March 19 to appoint 241 customs officers from the successful candidates, all of whom are Muslims, which heightened sectarian rhetoric.
Following the Cabinet’s decision, several successful candidates and those affected by the government’s decision (9 individuals) filed a review with the State Council on September 17, 2020, demanding the annulment of the Cabinet’s decision and the Supreme Customs Council’s decisions on appointing customs officers.
On March 23, 2023, the State Council issued decision No. 457, nullifying government decision No. 9/2020, as well as the Supreme Customs Council’s decisions, requiring adherence to the successful candidates’ sequence in the competition during appointments and declaring the right of the petitioner to be appointed because Article 95 of the constitution stipulates equal sectarian representation only for the first category, whereas the customs officer position is not among the first category positions.
What is the current situation?
Currently presented to the Cabinet is the approval to appoint 234 successful customs officers in the competition, all of whom are Sunni and Shia Muslims, in addition to 7 who submitted mercy petitions as they could not previously join military training courses due to exceptional personal circumstances, as shown in the table below.
The move to appoint these individuals has sparked a wave of Christian objections since they belong to Islamic sects, causing a sectarian imbalance despite Article 95 of the constitution restricting equal sectarian representation to first category positions only. Christians also reject the appointments under the pretext that appointments cannot be made amid a presidential vacancy.
It is noted that Jawad Adra is the founder of “Information International,” an independent research, studies, and scientific statistics company established in Beirut in 1995. “Information International” publishes research, survey, economic, financial, social, and cultural topics of interest to citizens and officials, in addition to periodic public opinion surveys on various issues.
Alongside “Information International,” Jawad Adra is also one of the founders of the “Nabu” Museum, which houses a unique collection of artistic artifacts dating back to the early Bronze and Iron Ages, and to the Roman, Greek, and Byzantine periods, as well as rare manuscripts and ethnographic materials.
Summary:
“Customs need reform before stuffing with employees”… This is what the head of “Information International,” Jawad Adra, wrote on his “X” platform account. This tweet sparked widespread controversy, so what’s the story?
