Machar urges South Sudan top civil servants to discourage tribalism

April 7, 2013 (JUBA) – South Sudan’s vice-president, Riek Machar, has urged top civil servants in the country to fight against tribalism in the government’s institutions.

Machar on Saturday called for a meeting with all the undersecretaries in the ministries including the chief administrator in the office of the president and briefed them on the ongoing process of the national reconciliation and the role they should play.

The secretary general of the government, Abdon Agau Jok, who heads the top civil servants in the country on Saturday told the press that the national reconciliation process was a concern to everybody and that the vice-president also informed the undersecretaries about the upcoming visit to Juba of five top civil servants from India.

Agau in statements after the meeting said the delegation from the world’s biggest democracy will interact with their South Sudanese counterparts and share experiences on issues of good governance in civil service.

There are concerns that some government institutions are dominated by certain tribes, and in particular are visibly worse in some of the institutions where both the minister and undersecretary come from the same ethnic group.

Employment to civil service positions is affected by instances of tribal considerations rather than merits in selecting the best applicants for the job. A report last year also revealed that 50% of the current civil servants in South Sudan are not qualified.

The national reconciliation process will address the challenge tribalism poses to the unity of the people of the new nation among other factors that cause disunity.

(ST)