Details emerge on $8m fraudulence report involving former minister and company
September 27, 2013 (JUBA) – More details have emerged on the money fraudulence scandal involving former national minister and a Daff Supplies International Ltd, following the investigation report released last month by an investigation committee formed by president Salva Kiir Mayardit.
The report presented to the president by the committee accused the former minister of cabinet affairs, Deng Alor Kuol, of fraudulence involving $7,959,400 in accordance with section 341 of the penal code act, 2008, and directed for his criminal prosecution in court.
Alor was accused of misinterpreting and turning the Council of Ministers resolution No: 33/2012 that talked about inspection of wiring in government offices, to mean buying of fire resistant safes, reads in part the 31-page report seen by Sudan Tribune.
The former minister “unilaterally” contacted the company called Daff Supplies International Ltd and requested them to effect the supply of the fire resistant safes and “failed” to coordinate with the tasked ministries while singly initiating the procurement of the equipment.
He was also accused of directing his claim to a junior, deputy minister of finance, Marial Awou Yol, hence circumventing the minister himself, Kosti Manibe Ngai, while he was known to be around.
Alor also unilaterally accepted the quotation of USD 7,959,400 for the 62 pieces of fire safes he allegedly ordered from the Daff Supplies International Ltd, pricing each safe at USD 128,377 and yet the market price from the supplier is only USD 3,000 for each safe, fraudulently “putting the government into further financial crisis.”
MULTIPLE IDENTITIES OF OWNER OF DAFF SUPPLIES INTERNATIONAL
The details in the report also discovered inconsistencies on Gaddafyi Athorbei, the owner of the company, Daff Supplies International Ltd, which involved in the fraudulence with the former minister, Deng Alor, as he has multiple identities and companies.
For instance, the report revealed that at times he is called Gaddafyi Athorbei and other times, these names are reversed; Athorbei Gaddaffyi, and in his old Sudanese passport issued in Juba, his name is written as Damascus Gaddaffyi Athorbei Amir.
Moreover, Gaddaffyi Athorbei has multiple dates and places of birth. In one document he was born in Libya, on the 16th July 1987 and in another it is stated that he was born in Tripoli, Libya, on the 6 June 1976.
However, in his testimony he said that he was actually born in July 1974 in Malakal, South Sudan.
Gaddafyi Athorbei owns nine registered companies in South Sudan such as Daff Supplies International Ltd; Daffy Investment Group; Gaddhaffy Athorbei; Athorbei Gaddhaffy; Athorbei Gaddhafy Damascus, etc.
It is not clear if he is in any way related to the former minister of finance, Deng Athorbei.
The company overpriced the fire resistant equipment by pricing each safe at USD 128,377 and yet the market price from the supplier is USD 3,000.
The committee further accused him of misleading the officials of the ministry of finance that the safes had been delivered to South Sudan, hence luring the officials into processing payment of the nearly USD 8 million.
He also directed the funds to another company in Kenya, Daffy Investment Group Ltd, instead of the company that accepted the offer, which is Daff Supplies Investment Ltd.
There was no procurement procedures followed as stipulated in the Interim Public and Disposal Regulations, 2006; and that the money was simply released by the Bank of South Sudan to the company without any contract entered into between the supplier and the ministry of finance as the spending agency.
Although the report recommended criminal proceeding against the former official, no case has yet been opened in court.
(ST)