Warrap parliament sacks clerk over under-performance

September 2, 2013 (WAU) – The speaker of Warrap state parliament has unexpectedly announced the dismissal of the clerk of the house for alleged under-performance, legislators said.

Speaker Madot Dut Deng announced the sacking of former clerk Nguany Aniindit Wol, requesting that the deputy clerk take charge until a replacement is appointed.

Mayar Deng Mayar, a member of the legislative, said the speaker had announced the clerk’s removal to the house at the closing session of the sitting which discussed how the state administration should respond to flooding and heavy rains which have submerged crops.

Mayar said the dismissal had caught the house by surprise, adding there had been no advance indication of the decision.

“Schedules of the sittings in the house end every Thursday and we did not discuss anything relating to this development last week. The speaker only announced the dismissal of the former clerk when the session was closing and the members were going away”, Mayar told Sudan Tribune from the state capital, Kuacjok.

He says that speaker has powers under the 2011 state transitional constitution to appoint and remove the clerk.

An ally of the former clerk also confirmed the dismissal, describing the speaker’s decision as an “unjustified unilateral act”.

“Yes comrade Nguany has been removed. The speaker of the assembly took a unilateral decision. He did not consult with the members. No question was put to members before the decision was reached”, the official, who did not want to be identified, told Sudan Tribune by phone on Monday from Kuacjok town.

He said that though Nguany was unhappy with the decision, he had accepted it for the sake of peace and stability.

(ST)