Officials of the M.T.A. have said they did not know about the contributions, and awarded the contract solely on merit.

The Prime Minister has announced a reform of the honours system saying they should be awarded on merit not seniority.

A spokesman for the governor said the jobs were awarded strictly on merit.

Anyone with appropriate skills may contribute, with commit rights being awarded on merit and de Raadt acting as coordinator.

Scholarships are typically awarded on merit or extremely high need.

Awarded on merit, it could be denied on a whim.

Under the Pendleton Act, office appointments were awarded on merit and competitive examination.

You also allege that the contracts for the B-1 were "not awarded on merit alone" and that competition was absent during procurement.

Larry Orluskie, a department spokesman, said all contracts would be awarded on merit.

They are among the few Federal scholarships awarded on merit, not financial need.