South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
By James Gatdet Dak
February 27, 2010 (JUBA) – The institution fighting corruption in Southern Sudan has been reinforced with additional structural and legal measures as the leadership of the semi-autonomous region strategizes for further back up systems in trying to eradicate the graft and pin down potential suspects.
In a document presented to the cabinet on Friday by the Vice President, Dr. Riek Machar Teny and with the assistance of the chairperson for the Southern Sudan Anti-Corruption Commission, Dr. Pauline Riak, additional ministerial and technical support structures were formed to follow up with the execution and effectiveness of the fight.
An overall forum to be chaired by the President with membership of all ministers, state governors, chairpersons of independent commissions and chambers, chairpersons of specialized committees in parliament, state ministers of parliamentary affairs, etc., is to meet in every six months to review progress and challenges and provide further directives.
Meanwhile the Commission has already distributed a form to officials throughout Southern Sudan to declare their respective income, assets and liabilities.
“All executive and legislative constitutional office holders, Justices and senior civil service officials at all levels of government in Southern Sudan as well as persons serving under non-governmental organizations or such other organizations using public resources” are required to fill out the form and return it to the Commission by the end of May, 2010, after April elections.
In accordance with the provisions of Article 121 (1) of the Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan, 2005; section 35 of the Southern Sudan Anti-Corruption Commission Act, 2009 and section 128 of the Penal Code Act, 2008, on which the declaration is based, the Commission warned that “The information provided in this Declaration Form must be truthful and correct in every respect, to the knowledge of the person making the declaration.”
Also income, assets and liabilities of spouse(s) (wife or husband), children and dependents are to be declared as required by law.
The long list of required declaration of income and assets an official owns include details of cash in bank, financial institutions or at hand; by supplying particulars of the bank/financial institution, name(s) of account holder, account number, type of account and the money held in their/his or her credit.
If an official has banked money outside of Southern Sudan the law also requires that he or she gives the particulars of that country and the details of the account.
The officials are also required to supply the particulars of their respective incomes earned back in the last twelve months before assumption of their respective current employments and give details of their annual incomes.
In the declaration of assets the Commission has divided it into immovable assets (such as land, house or building) and movable assets (such as livestock, cars, trucks, earth movers, precious germs, ornamental gold, boats, aero planes, etc).
All the immovable properties’ size(s), acreage and/or value, location, date they were acquired, source(s) of funds used to purchase or develop the asset(s), income earned from the asset(s) and the current status of the asset(s) are required by law.
The declaration also includes shares or other interests the officials may own. “Please set out the shares, debentures or other interests however described owned or held in trust by any other person in a business enterprise/company (private or public/partnership/sole proprietorship or in any other undertaking(s) howsoever described within or outside Southern Sudan,” it reads in part.
“Jointly owned assets, private and business accounts, as well as partnership or sole proprietorship interests within and outside Southern Sudan shall be declared,” it continues.
It also requires specification of particulars of official’s liability portfolio including loan(s), overdraft(s), credit facility, hire purchase, salary advances and other unpaid debts, etc.
The 14-page declaration form also requires that any newly employed official from now on should fill out the form and submit it to the Commission within thirty (30) days of individual’s assumption of office.
The declaration is a permanent policy that shall be made annually on or before the end of February of each year; and on termination of service.
“All declarations shall be maintained in a confidential and secure manner, and shall not be subject to public inquiry unless required to be part of a public inquiry,” it states.
The fight against corruption in the region was launched in 2006, less than a year after the formation of the government in 2005. The leadership has always publicly declared its “zero tolerance” policy on the disease which prematurely eats up the infant economy of the war ravaged and recovering South.
However, no senior official has ever been prosecuted by the established anti-corruption body for the last four years despite some publicly known serious misappropriation of public funds by some individual senior officials.
More than one thousand corruption cases were earlier reported to have been sitting in the office of the Commission’s chairperson.
The Commission’s chairperson had earlier requested to be empowered with the power not only to investigate corruption cases, but also to persecute the culprits, and warned that she expected corruption to fight back.
The power to prosecute culprits was initially entrusted to the ministry of Legal Affairs and Constitutional Development.
Dr. Pauline Riak earlier also warned that her Commission would strike at running away culprits beyond international borders abroad, as her institution would coordinate such mandate with relevant institutions in foreign countries to catch the fugitives.
She has not however revealed how her Commission would make sure that all the information provided in the declaration by each and every official is truthful; how to dig out any hidden information by the official and how to deal with the official that would declare false information.
(ST)
thieleling
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
Dear Readers,
Dr. Pauline Riak is too weak to handle anti-corruption in south sudan. She is NOT independent thinker, powerful, confidence and influential enough to lead fighting corruptions. I wonder if she was put there as an intellectual window dresser fighting corruptions. Her weakness becomes the tool that attracts the big-wigs to keep her there.
johnmaker
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
First and foremost the so called anti-corruption in south sudan they too need to be a scrutinized by the GOSS official.People like Riek Machar are great cheaters.They can direct people in one way and they go oposite.My advice is ,if at all there is that freedom of speech in south,than the so calle anti corruption start with people like Salva,Riek,Igga downward.Instead starting in the midle and cut most coruptees up there is like saying you can care an ero plane at your thumb.Caution!!!!!!
Maruon Ayiei
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
What is wrong with those people in that cubical? How many measures are needed to reduce those rampant corruption? Yes we hear you are committed to change the dynamic of that poor administrative. Why not implement it? We don’t need an explanation why you don’t do it? Just do it
Dinka Boy
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
yes,Goss need to employed people base on qualifications. There are many people who are now working in wrong departments because they are there for the seek of being paid.
Please you guys need to know who can handle administration effectively. Accountants, Marketers, Finance, management, Human resources, economic plannings, and public relations are the most people to be assigned in the money managment teams.
if you put criminal justics to manage the role of accountant then it means the lost of money because they have no know-how oh how to manage the account. He /she can mixed the expense, account payable, account receiveable with debt and other transactions.
Please Goss need to hire the right people to manage the right task otherwise the governmnet will not stop loss for decades.
Thanks
Gombu Gindalang
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
Where are the Southern Sudan accountants? The Southern Sudan needs well trained accountants, internal auditors, tax lawyers,tax auditors and enforecable laws. The Anti-corruption committee is not an independant body and, therefore, is rubber stamp to top GOSS officials. What a government!!!
Jimmy G. G. is a Middle Manager in the Audit Division of the Government of Canada revenue department.
Kuer Dau Apai
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
To end corruption shall be a future set-war after the two main targets are achieved successfully such as April’s Election and 2011’s Referendum.
Corrupted leaders should be left in corruption so that to be successful as they are energized and fuelled-up for strong debates with the Arabs.
Let those who need money get money and those who do not want the mistreatments and victimizations of the Arabs all should be left unengaged to lead to their goals.
Thank by Kuer Dau Apai
Oduck Bol
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
Your time is over F.G. Kiir with your minsters and Abyi looters while their not yet southerns. Leave the corruption cases to the coming next south Sudan peresident Lam Akol. You and your naphew did nothing since CPA agreement. The question is that who will be the first to be put in court? I sugest, Salva Kiir should be the first one. He gave $1000,000 dolars to Kenya for help while his people dieing with hunger,nickets, no good teachers to teach studants at schools,no health care for them,also he bought his Dectorate in Kenya with public funds. His naphew who was faience minster took $6000,000 and walked away without a single trial. So, what is new now in your system? because of election? one time is enough.
You will get my vote peresident when I am not cynic anymore.
Gatwech
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
Dear readers,
Catch those traditional but modernized and urbanized thieves!
I know that all the thieves under this tribal government will be chased like robbers across state and international borders when time comes.
I believe under Dr. Machar’s soon to come leadership this strategy will be implemented in full. All the tribal thieves have begun to shiver because they will be caught like rats every where in this world and will be forced to vomit every illegal food they swallowed. Their houses, aero planes, money, etc which they got by stealing the public money will be confiscated.
They think they can run but they will not hide. Time will soon come to fight this corruption for good, not in a pretense way under the leadership of Salvatore Kiir Miyerdit.
Ahahahahhaaaaa……..All those thieves, Ngundeng said you will vomit all those illegal meals you took at the expense of the suffering poor people of the South. You have not even built your own villages with those stolen money from the oil. shame on you! Your mothers and fathers are still moving naked in their poor villages while you eat up the money there in Juba like orphans and take the rest of it to foreign countries.
They will all be confiscated! Ahahahahahhaaaaa……..
Shame on those thieves. I will love to volunteer and help to catch them every in the five continents of the world.
That Dr. Pauline Riak should really do something from now or risk being removed in the next government.
Time1
South Sudan introduces additional measures against corruption
we have to fight corruption in all areas of life, we will never eradicate corruption but we have to reduce it to minimum level were it does not affect the development of the country.