South Sudan must harmonize number plates say businessman
By Philip Thon Aleu
May 5, 2011 (KAMPALA) – Baping Modern plates, a South Sudan based private company producing car number plates, has called upon the government to harmonize production of number plates for economic and security reasons.
Nul Jacob Mayendit, the managing director of Baping Co., told Sudan Tribune in an interview in Kampala on Wednesday that having differently coded number plates from the same country said the current system is not safe and means people can change their number plate easily after an accident.
South Sudan is due to secede from the north in July 2011 as a result of January, 2011 referendum provided by 2005 peace agreement that ended decades of civil war.
Divided into ten states, South Sudan decentralized vehicles number with SS (for South Sudan) preceding state’s name, followed by numerical figure and an alphabetical letter. Number plates for government vehicles in South Sudan start GOSS, a number and alphabetical letter(s).
A private car plate number in Jonglei state is written as SSJSxxxA and GOSSxxxA for government car. This system applies to all the ten states apart from Central Equatoria and Eastern Equatoria states where the “SS” is dropped and car number plate begins with either EC or EE.
When cars are bought by south Sudanese from neighboring countries the number plate of that country is not changed. The transport ministries or the interior ministry should keep a central registry of all vehicles Jacob said.
Another anomaly is that, there are no regulations monitoring issuing of number plates and one can change from a one state to other at will. Each state produces numbers in its desired color, quality and quantity. Plate numbers used during the war like NS (New Sudan) are still used.
“The big problem is having so different number plates of own our country that do not carry security print, that are produced at any time you want to produce,” said Nul adding that “this poses a threat to our security and loss of revenue to our country.”
It is easy to shift car number plate from one state to another, Mr. Nul says.
“If I make an accident in Juba (Central Equatoria state), I can [elude the police and] rush to Eastern Equatoria state and change the number there. Where is the security [of citizens] guaranteed here?”
(ST)
Listen to full interview of Baping managing director, Nul Jacob Mayendit, with Sudan Tribune below.
Obol Sam Gabriel
‘South Sudan must harmonize number plates’ say businessman
Congratulation Mr.Philip Thon aleu.That should be the right proceeders for South-Sudan Government to applied in the system immediately.For sure the plate number must be uniform like any other countries where they used to go especially East Africa where by if you go to Kenya you will find K follow by figures and alphabatical word U,or Tz only the different shall be in Government vehicles which may be SSG or Goss like what i can see UG,KG or TZG but this name GOSS has to be replaced by SSG.
NYONGORO
South Sudan must harmonize number plates say businessman
Baping Modern Plates: first and foremost, your corrupt company and the illiterate GOSS should understand that in a proper federal system, each state has all rights and priviledges to issue driving license and number plates. You want to reverse the process because you assume you are the legitimate company to produce all number plates. This will never be the case after July 9, 2011 because you were awarded the contract illegally through your corrupt uncles in the system.
In the next government, the process will be different and you will have to compete and be considered by each state. Don’t campaign to make things fit squarely to suit your interest and the insider’s you eat together at GOSS. Baling does not yet have the state-of-the-art technology for number plates as yet. What you have now is the best by the standards of the illiterate unexposed greedy uncles you have in GOSS.
South Sudanese are not as dumb as you thought. We are watching you thieves.