I have a tendency to think the last part of your statement is most accurate. These officials seem unqualified for most tasks and were hired/promoted way beyond thru capabilities. There is jot one single thing I have seen or heard that to my mind, justifies their positions or salaries.
I have my own CA nightmare story.
When I was in my twenties I was thrilled to get a job offer from the Pacific Telephone Company. They had me managing a whole bunch of folks in an industry I knew nothing about...
That should have been a red flag but I was young and stupid and arrogant and figured I would learn the job.
On day one I walk into my new office and the person who had the job was cleaning out her stuff.
I noticed that there was stacks of files and papers from the floor to the ceiling on every wall.
I asked her what all that was and she said “You will figure it out”.
I should have walked out right at that moment.
But—I stayed—and the next two years of my working life was one crisis after another, one disaster after another.
When they finally fired me I was upset of course....
Lol.
(It turned that was the “impossible” job that nobody else wanted—and that was why it was available.)