President Kiir sacks head of South Sudan police service
March 9, 2017 (JUBA) – South Sudan president Salva Kiir has issued decrees sacking the head of the police service, promoting and appointing new officers.
It was, however, not immediately clear what prompted Kiir to make new changes.
Police sources attributed the cause to an internal pressure within the police service in which the former inspector was heavily criticized for not getting a grip on near daily violence carried out by armed criminals, prompting his opponents in service to call for a shake-up in the security services.
The changes are seen as a first step towards the comprehensive reorganization and re-positioning of Police Force before integration with the faction of Sudan people’s liberation movement in opposition loyal to the First Vice President, Taban Deng Gai.
A high ranking police officer told Sudan Tribune on Thursday that the changes were part of the recommendation by an internal committee drawn to examine and come out with what could be done to improve the image of the police services so that it be could a people centered institution.
“I was part of this administrative committee which was tasked to come out with strong recommendations about how the image of the police should be improved. The objective was to determine the general and specific causes of the collapse of public confidence in the police and recommend ways of restoring public trust in the institution. The committee was also tasked to examine records of performance of officers of the Police Force with a view to identifying those that can no longer fit into the system”, said the officer.
“For recommendation of the committee to be realized, the new leadership was required and I think this is what the president has done. He has actually acted on the recommendation”, he added.
(ST)