It then turned out that the line prescribed from Damascus in the name of the National Command was disastrous and caused the Iraqi party to lose power for some five years. Their rift spilled over into the smaller Ba'th parties elsewhere. The latter was eliminated after the entry of Syrian troops into Lebanon. Whatever remains of the Jordanian and the Palestinian Ba'th parties is now dominated from Syria, just like the surviving Lebanese party. The formal government apparatus, though theoretically working in parallel with the party, is actually controlled by it.
Control is maintained by filling almost all key posts with party members.
The 250 members of the People's Assembly are elected by constituency elections once every four years. The rest are independents. The constitution gives the Assembly the prerogative of naming a presidential candidate, but his name must first be approved and recommended to it by the Regional Command. The Assembly further enacts laws, approves the budget, pronounces on development plans, and ratifies international agreements. It is entitled to review government policies and to criticize them, as it deems necessary.