Mu'awiya's primary internal challenge was overseeing a Syria-based government which could reunite the politically and socially fractured Caliphate and assert authority over the tribes which formed its armies.^[113] He applied indirect rule to the Caliphate's provinces, appointing governors with autonomy spanning full civil and military authority.^[126] Although in principle governors were obliged to forward surplus tax revenues to the caliph,^[113] in practice most of the surplus was distributed among the provincial garrisons and Damascus received a negligible share.^[27][127] During Mu'awiya's caliphate, the governors relied on the ashrāf (tribal chieftains), who served as intermediaries between the authorities and the tribesmen in the garrisons.^[113] Rather than the absolute government practiced by Caliph Ali, Mu'awiya's statecraft was likely inspired by his father, who utilized his wealth to establish political alliances.^[127] The caliph generally preferred bribing his opponents over direct confrontation.^[127] In the summation of the historian Hugh Kennedy, Mu'awiya ruled by "making agreements with those who held power in the provinces, by building up the power of those who were prepared to co-operate with him and by attaching as many important and influential figures to his cause as possible".^[127]