Parliament refers legal affairs’ alleged misconduct to Committee
By James Gatdet Dak
October 14, 2008 (JUBA) – The Southern Sudan legislative chamber today referred the case of alleged corruption in the legal affairs ministry to a specialized panel for further investigations.
In her presentation to the SSLA last month on salary structures, the Minister of Labor, Public Service and Human Resource Development, Awut Deng Acuil blamed Minister Michael Makuei Lueth of the Ministry of Legal Affairs and Constitutional Development for paying higher salaries to his legal staff, contrary to the policy of unified salary structure, and sending 22 of them for undergraduate studies abroad with full constant pay of their monthly salaries, etc.
The Assembly responded by summoning Minister Makuei to explain the situation.
In his presentation to the Assembly on Monday, Makuei said he acted in accordance with his Ministry’s approved budget that equated its salaries with the Judiciary of Southern Sudan.
It was also alleged that about 90% of the 22 staff or law students he sent abroad for further studies were from “one community or village.”
Makuei denied that the selection was intended to happen the way it did and he earlier explained that these law students happened to get their own admission papers from universities and his Ministry had to just release them with their salaries.
The Assembly’s Specialized Committee for Public Service is expected to resubmit the case to the parliament within the next two weeks for further debates and final resolutions.
(ST)