South Sudan anti-corruption commission sets up office in Unity state

By Bonifacio Taban Kuich

September 1, 2010 (BENTIU) – South Sudan’s anti-corruption commission has set up an office in Unity State to investigate civil servants and politicians for corruption.

Officials from the commission are visiting states in southern Sudan to establish the commission.

Elisma Wani Daniel commissioner of the South Sudan Anti-Corruption Commission (SSACC) told Sudan Tribune, their visit to Unity State, is to meet with state authorities to make a memorandum of understanding of of how to realize a vision of a corruption free of south.

Daniel that the SSACC had produced guidelines on how to report corruption. They have also created a form to make the declaration of assets and income liabilities easier in accordance with article 121 of south Sudan’s interim constitution that request all leaders upon assumption their offices to formally declare their assets.

The commissioner said the south plans to put a corruption monitoring mechanism in place. There will also be an anti-corruption forum in each of southern Sudan’s 10 states, which will be headed by the state governor.

The South Sudan Anti-Corruption Commission, are mandated by article (148) of the interim of south Sudan constitution to do the following:

1. Protect public properties

2. Investigation cases of corruptions involving public and privates sector and shall be submit to the ministry of Legal Affairs and Constitutional development for necessary actions.

3. Combined administrative malt -practices in publics’ institution, nepotism, favoritism, tribalism, gender discrimination, bribery and sexual harassment.

The SSACC is mandated under article (121) of the interim constitution of south Sudan, which requires all person to confidentially and formally declare their income and liabilities.

Daniel said, “South Sudan Anti-corruption Commission is not mandated to persecute corruptions cases but it is Ministry of Legal Affairs that can persecute corruption cases”.

South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir Mayardit pledged during his successful campaign for re-election in April that based on the experiences of countries south Sudan’s anti-corruptions commission must be given powers of prosecution.,

Kiir also announced that he planned to give the anti-corruption body powers not only investigate cases of corruption but also prosecute in August 2009.

No official has been prosecuted for corruption since the commission was established in 2005.

Unity State governor Taban Deng Gai welcomed the commissions to his state. Deng said the anti-corruption commission was the only way to eliminate all corruption cases which arise within government institutions and the private sector.

Earlier this month Reuters reported that Awut Deng, the south’s minister for labor, as saying, ‘Corruption, a small private sector and the reluctance of southern Sudanese to farm the land are stalling development’.

South Sudan is due to vote on whether it wants to become independent from the rest of Sudan in January 2010.

(ST)