South Sudan parliament says “low pay” affecting army’s performance

June 27, 2013 (JUBA) – The deputy speaker of South Sudan’s parliament said on Wednesday that better pay for the army was critical, if they are to provide adequate security in the country.

Daniel Awet Akot said the house must work together with the executive, particularly the office of the president, to ensure that the necessary efforts are exerted to raise payment for those in active military service to raise their morale and dedication.

“This is a serious issue and it is a concern of everybody. It affects not only performance of the army and dedications to providing service elegantly but breeds indiscipline and bad behaviour”, he said

The South Sudan National Legislative Assembly, Akot argued, must do its best to raise the pay of soldiers and other security officials, stressing that a pay rise would boost the morale.

Akot made the remarks as members of the assembly reviewed the annual budget before the country’s ministry pf finance and economic planning tables it later this month.

The governor of Central Equatoria state, Clement Wani Konga, also joined the debate on Wednesday saying that the army’s low pay was a challenging issue.

Konga said army salaries are “so low that the soldiers cannot support their families and take their children to school and for health service”.

A private in the army gets 600 South Sudanese pounds (about $150), which reduces to SSP 500 when taxed. Currently, a 50-kilogram bag of sorghum costs up to SSP 800.

The governor was speaking at a meeting with Riek Gok Majok, the acting head of the bureau for community security and small arms control at South Sudan’s ministry of interior.

Governor Konga called for the setting up of proper storage systems at state and country levels to reduce small arms in the hands of local people.

“There are a lot of weapons still in the hand of the civil population in this country. This is a challenge that requires collective efforts and working together as individuals and as government,” he said.

The issue of low pay for the army and other law enforcement agencies is also another challenge facing this country, added the governor.

Meanwhile Majok said his institution had so far managed to collect 3,700 different types of guns from civilians since 2005. He stressed the need for proper record keeping so weapons and their ownership can be tracked.

(ST)