Public administration in Sanama

This article is about public administration in Sanama primarily after 1707 AN.

Background

At independence in 1671, Sanama inherited a Shirerithian public administration, organised along feudal lines, with the Count of Amarr and Count of Lachmodan exercising formal power. However, real power belonged to local bureaucratic cadres and military commanders, resulting in a patchwork of public services. In most areas, private solutions prevailed, often provided by either charitable or religious organisations, as well as private for-profit companies. During the years between independence and the 1678 Sanaman coup d'état, the highly decentralised Sanaman polity had only partial success in reforming and nationalising public services provided, primarily focused on schooling and healthcare. The autonomous countries of Cisamarra, Highpass and Thanatos were largely not affected by these efforts. When authority over the state transferred to a center-right government in 1679 with the election of Keysa Nur Pinito Caprici as President, the reforms were largely halted. Instead, the government aimed to supplement the private providers with public options where needed, but even those reforms were spotty and often less than effective, especially during federation. After the Sanaman Civil War, with the communalist overtake in 1701, the again highly decentralised nature of the polity prevented effective reform across the nation. Instead, reforms depended on the competence and interest of local and regional leaders, and even then the committee structure of the state was a barrier against meaningful and comprehensive reform.

Public administration under the Fourth Republic

Prior to 1707 Sanama had six levels of public administration, contributing to a very bureaucratic and ineffective system. In 1709 the new social democratic government initiated a reform of the public administrative system, reducing the number of levels to four, with defined powers delegated to each level. Under the union, the national government, the republic is divided into people's republics. They are primarily responsible for law enforcement services, vehicle registration, regional planning, tertiary and higher education, and advanced healthcare. The people's republics are divided into cantons, primarily responsible for fire and rescue services, public transport, planning and lower tertiary education. The cantons are in turn divided into municipalities, both urban and rural, with primary responsibility for primary education, secondary education, elderly care, local law enforcement and public order, primary healthcare, and zoning and local planning.