CONTEMPORARY PATRIMONIALISM AND ADMINISTRATIVE INEFFICIENCY: AN ANALYSIS OF THE MISUSE OF APPOINTED POSITIONS AS AN OBSTACLE TO THE CONTINUITY OF PUBLIC SERVICE

Abstract

This study promotes a critical analysis of the modalities of appointment to public offices, with special emphasis on the nature and limits of commissioned positions within the Brazilian legal system. Under the aegis of a qualitative methodology of bibliographic and documentary nature, the research investigates the doctrinal and jurisprudential framework that delimits the functional structure of the Public Administration, distinguishing the specificities of life-tenured, permanent, and at-will appointment and dismissal positions. The core of the discussion lies in the issue of contemporary patrimonialism, manifested through the uncritical creation and distorted occupation of commissioned functions—practices that act as obstacles to the continuity and efficiency of public services. Conversely, the role of public competitive examinations is highlighted as an indispensable instrument for administrative moralization, impersonality, and professionalization. Finally, guidelines are proposed to improve public management, aiming to consolidate an administrative structure technically capable of delivering excellence to the community, in strict compliance with the constitutional principles of efficiency and the supremacy of the public interest.