Goss Assembly Passed 3.6 billion Fiscal Year 2009 Budget

By Isaac Vuni

January 27, 2009 (JUBA) — The Government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) Assembly today passed at 2:40 pm Sudan local time the 3.6 billion Sudanese pounds budget for Fiscal Year 2009 during a hectic debate chaired by Hon. Speaker James Wani Igga.

The committee recommended increasing funding for building houses for the family of the late Dr. John Garang de Mabor from two and half million to three million Sudanese pounds for building in Bor town.

The committee also approved funding of Kush Institution by GOSS in honor of Deng Ajak, a founding SPLA member who died in plane crash last year together with SPLA minister and veteran politician Justin Yac Arop.

The committee also observed that the Gender and Social Welfare minister squandered 735,912 Sudanese pounds on pretext of donation to women in the county.

The committee further recommended construction of warehouses for food storage in southern Sudan as Hon. Wanji urged the August House to work together in facing a looming economic meltdown of South Sudan.

Dissatisfied, Hon. Martin Aligo Abe accused the chairman of Economy, Development and Finance committee of ignoring views, observations and recommendations expressed by legislators during the second reading.

Hon. Rebecca Mabior informed the house that the Kenyan minister of agriculture is accused of selling 5.3 million bags of grain to GOSS that does not even have a storage system. However, the former minister of agriculture, Dr. Martin Lomuro, explained that there were more than one million extract bags of grain at Rank.

Hon. Mabior observed that budget for operations was smaller than budget for salaries, which would seriously affect development. Hence she recommended immediate salary reduction of GOSS employees effective in this year budget.

The Assembly was divided over whether the report should be wholly read or only highlight on amendments. 85 MPs supported highlighting just the amendments, while 19 supported a whole reading and eight were undecided.

Also the question of whether food procurement is to be control by the minister of finance or the minister of agriculture was put to vote and those who wanted it under finance were 82. Under agriculture were four and undecided were 19, including Minister of Agriculture Samson Kwaje.

The assembly supposedly has only eight vehicles while 30 were approved for acquisition in last year’s budget. Hon. Remijo said MPs were given loans for second-hand vehicles that require constant maintenance, and he suggested getting new ones.

Hon. David Mayo complained that commissions are paying a lot of rent because they have no offices besides their budgets had been reduced and the chairman of economic sector said they should endeavour to build their own offices in the southern Sudan capital. Present were 106 MPs and only six ministers

In a separate development, the Chairman of Community Development Fund (CDF) Hon. Bari Wanji said 19.5 million dollars was approved for CDF in budget of 2006, and in 2007 -2008 CDF has total of 141 million SDG in the account waiting distribution to 79 counties of South Sudan.

The first step of implementing, however, he emphasized, is developing transparency, which started with formation of County Development Community (CDC) comprising eleven members.

Secondly is the necessary selection of projects which grassroots people have identified as a priority in a particular county. They will fill a standard form and send it to the clerk of the assembly to certified as a visible project of the area.

Each CDC chose its committee chairperson then select a contractor to whom project money will be paid in three phases, giving a county capacity to construct people’s identified project. This exercise has already been done three months ago, said the chairman.

For the purpose of accountability and transparency, the executive director, who is not a member of CDC nor an SPLA, as well as a senior accountant and a representative of CDC, would sign cheques of county CDF as signatories

CDF chairperson disclosed that they have already arranged with banks for transfer of money to county branches to effect payment, who in turn will be informing it through electronic communication daily to him names of counties that have withdrawn funds. He appeals to southerners to be watchful and report to his office any MPs claiming ownership of CDF money that has been approved by GOSS authorities.