Senior official at South Sudan Referendum Bureau resigns, says unhappy with boss

By Uma Julius

November 7, 2010 (JUBA) – A senior member of Southern Sudan Referendum Bureau (SSRB) said on Sunday that he has resigned, two months before the South is scheduled to decide whether it will separate from the north to become the world’s newest nation.

“Yes, I tendered in my resignation on October 28, through the Chairperson of the bureau (SSRB) although I have not yet got any response from the [South Sudan] referendum commission (SSRC) in Khartoum,” Dong Samuel who is the bureau’s head of training told Sudan Tribune in an interview.

Samuel said there was a poor working relationship between members of the southern bureau and accused its chairperson of only consulting southerners in the north and preferring to run the bureau as a “personal affair other [than] in national interests”.

The resignation is the latest setback to already lagging preparations for the much anticipated self-determination referendum for the south. With voter registration due to begin on November 15, voter lists will only be completed – under the latest revised schedule – just before voting begins on January 9.

The Southern Sudan Referendum Bureau (SSRB) is based in Juba the capital of South Sudan and is responsible for the logistics of the referendum in the 10 states of southern Sudan. It is a five member subsidiary committee of the national body, the Southern Sudan Referendum Commission (SSRC).

The Khartoum-based SSRC was appointed by the tripartite Presidency of the Republic and is responsible for interpreting the 2009 referendum law, organizing the vote for southern Sudanese who live outside the south and to determine policy decisions. It is chaired by Mohamed Ibrahim Khalil with Chan Reec Madut as his deputy chair. Madut is also the chair of the SSRB.

Samuel said it had become difficult for him to work under the top leadership of the SSRB, citing what he described as “poor institutional working relationship” within the referendum body.

He said that he has yet to receive a response from the SSRB or the SSRC to his resignation despite submitting it to Madut over a week ago.

“In my view, my actions were justified because it was becoming increasingly difficult for me to deliver my mandate,” Samuel said.

The former training official offered a glimpse of the environment inside the SSRB saying that since the bureau was established no formal meeting has been held with chairperson Madut.

“Can you imagine that we never held any formal meeting with the Chairman ever since the bureau in the south was formed? He [SSRB Chairperson Madut] prefers to consult with the [SSRC] commission in the north and we as members of the bureau would instead rely on information from southerners sitting on that commission,” he said.

However he stressed that despite his resignation he will be willing to help the southern bureau if he is consulted and urged members of SSRB to maintain their independence and address the technical processes involved in referendum preparations to avoid “gambling with the future of the people of Southern Sudan.”

Sudan Tribune has, been informed by multiple sources that several failed attempts were made by Southern officials to convince Dong to reverse his decision.

A technical secretariat member of Southern Sudan 2011 referendum taskforce, who did not want to be named described Dong’s resignation as a significant loss.

“Dong Samuel’s decision to quit the bureau is certainly a big loss to the body. That probably explains why there have been repeated attempts by top government officials to lure him so that he can reverse his decision, albeit this has not succeeded,” the official said on Saturday.

Chairman Madut was unavailable for comment on Dong’s resignation but Samuel Maccar, another SSRB member, confirmed the resignation saying that Samuel was entitled to making his own decisions.

But Maccar distanced himself from the allegation that SSRB members have poor working relationships.

“We work as a team and everyone is free to consult with the Chairman at any time” Maccar said.

The SSRC in Khartoum also have troubles of their own with many senior members unhappy with the leadership of Khalil. This week, the SSRC spokesperson Jamal Mohamed Ibrahim announced his resignation citing disagreements with Khalil and its Secretary General Mohamed Osman Al-Nijoumi. He also said that the plebiscite must be postponed until April 9th at the least.

According to a source familiar with the work of the SSRC, Al-Nijoumi himself wanted to resign for similar reasons but was convinced to stay. Khalil has said in press statements last month that it would be a “miracle” to hold the vote as scheduled on January 9, 2011.

Local media in Sudan has recently launched a fierce campaign against the SSRC chief with some calling on him to step down.

(ST)