THE National Federation Party (NFP) wants recruitment and promotions in the civil service to be based on academic merit instead of nepotism.
This was one of the party's recommendations to the Constitution Commission as its submission to the proposed constitution.
Party general secretary Parmod Rae said since 1987, the civil service had been rocked with nepotism, cronyism, racial and gender disparity and militarisation.
"While there was a slight improvement after the enactment of the 1997 Constitution, the civil service has remained in a state of decay," he said.
Mr Rae said the make-up of the service should reflect the ethnic composition of the population.
He said military officers that qualified for civil service posts must resign from the military before taking up civil service posts.
Other submissions by the NFP included Fiji remaining a secular state and that the power-sharing provisions enshrined in the 1997 Constitution be retained.
The party also recommended that all three principal languages - Fijian, Hindustani and English - be taught as compulsory in all primary schools from Class One to Class Eight.