South Sudan parliament delays April session due to national census
By Isaac Vuni
March 31, 2008 (JUBA) — The first session of Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly (SSLA) in 2008 scheduled for 7th April has been postponed to first week of May 2008, announced the Acting Speaker, Daniel Deng Monydit. The adjournment is decided to allow MPs to participate in national census mobilisation campaign.
According to Monydit, who is also the chairperson of security and public order of the assembly, the postponement came as a result of consultation he made with both the Speaker James Wani Igga and President of the government of Southern Sudan General Salva Kiir Mayardit.
The Acting Speaker said the reasons for the postponement is to allowed members of parliament to participate in their respective constituencies during the forth coming Sudan fifth Population and Housing Census, scheduled to kick off from 15th to 30th April 2008, in order to assist in the smooth running of the counting exercise which Monydit described as a national exercise upon which many things depends.
It is to be recalled that the first session of the assembly went on recess on 31st December 2007 after having passed seven crucial bills which are the Personal Income Tax passed by presidential order and endorsed by the assembly, Constituency Development Fund, Southern Sudan Research Council, GoSS Annual Budget 2008, the Judiciary bill, the Kush Institution, and a Code of Civil Procedure bill.
As stipulated in the CPA and the Interim Southern Sudan constitution, the life span of the current interim assembly is left with only two sessions, moreover there are a lot to be done in legislations.
On the other hand people are bitterly complaining on usage of Islamic law in southern Sudan courts as opposed to conventional laws which the parliament has yet to enact.
For them to set a good foundation in the history of southern Sudan, the lawmakers need to double their efforts in the remaining two sessions so as to legislate and pass the most needed bills such as human rights and anti corruptions bill.
The southern Sudan minister of Legal Affair and Constitutional Development in an exclusive interview to Sudan Tribune accused the assembly of not passing bills and said he see no reason of damping so many bills before the assembly.
Whereas the SSLA Chairperson of Information and Culture, in the press conference he held on 15th March 2008 denied that the assembly was delaying in passing bills; instead he said the bills were not brought to the assembly from the ministry of legal affairs and constitutional development, adding that they may be on the way or waiting to be pass by the councilor of ministers then to the assembly.
The pending bills before the assembly committee of legal, affairs are; Penal Code bill 2007, the ministry of legal affairs and constitutional development bill 2007, child bill 2007 and code of criminal procedure bill 2007.
(ST)