---------- Forwarded message ---------- From: John Ashworth <[email protected]> Date: Thu, Nov 10, 2011 at 9:20 AM Subject: [sudan-john-ashworth] Awut Deng's resignation To: Group <[email protected]>
1. South Sudan Delays Program to Root Out Unqualified State Workers November 09, 2011, 2:55 AM EST By Jared Ferrie Nov. 8 (Bloomberg) -- A program by newly independent South Sudan to root out unqualified state workers is being delayed by disputes over who should be affected, a deputy minister said. The person who was spearheading the campaign, Labour and Public Services Minister Awut Deng Acuil, resigned last month, without saying why. While as many as 65 percent of state workers may have falsified their credentials or are unqualified, public- service jobs are seen as just reward for people who fought in a two-decade civil war that led to South Sudan’s independence on July 9, said Deputy Information Minister Atem Yaak Atem. “That is the bone of contention,” Atem said by phone today in Juba, the capital. “The principle is acceptable to all; it is how to go about it that is the issue.” Salaries in South Sudan will consume about 42 percent of its almost $2 billion budget this year. Ninety-eight percent of state revenue comes from oil production that the country inherited from its northern neighbor, Sudan, at independence. While President Salva Kiir has vowed to fight corruption, a report by the London-based risk analyst group Maplecroft last month said Acuil’s departure “may highlight the power of vested interests against reform.” Government offices received letters last month from Acuil’s ministry instructing them to form screening committees chaired by deputy ministers to investigate employees’ backgrounds and determine their qualifications. The government has not said when the program will begin. Some officials are resisting the screening process, Peter D’Souza, an economic adviser to the Joint Donor Team of six countries providing aid to South Sudan, said in a phone interview yesterday in Juba. “Obviously there are patronage networks and other factors that make that difficult,” he said. --Editors: Karl Maier, Heather Langan To contact the reporter on this story: Jared Ferrie in Juba, South Sudan, at [email protected] http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-11-09/south-sudan-delays-program-to-root-out-unqualified-state-workers.html END1 2. Confusion over resignation of South Sudan’s public services minister October 31, 2011 (JUBA) - Awut Deng Acuil, South Sudan’s minister for labour, public service and human resource development, was relieved from her position over the weekend with no clear reason being given by her or the government. Acuil is reported to have resigned from the cabinet days before the state television (SSTV) announced President Salva Kiir’s decree, which relieved the minister from her powerful portfolio, just weeks after she was re-appointed in the Kiir’s post-independence reshuffle. The presidential decree does not, however, explain why she resigned or when Kiir will appoint her successor. An official from the public service ministry, who wished to remain anonymous due to the sensitivity of the matter, told Sudan Tribune on Sunday that the minister’s woes mainly stemmed from her recent decision to form a committee that would be tasked with nationwide screening of all civil service employees both at the state and national level. Acuil’s screening committee, which was to be headed by the minister herself, he added, was reportedly endorsed by president Kiir as was scheduled to begin immediately. “We all knew that the decision to form such a committee would rub many people the wrong way. There are scores of people in public service who lack qualifications and removing them will not be an easy task,” said the official. A similar project in Unity state established by governor Taban Deng Gai, was met with considerable resistance. Acuil’s committee, consisting of three people, was to be headed by the ministers for labour, public service and human resource development. “The whole concept of public service reforms was bound to face challenges once the implementation process got underway. Not many people have properly comprehended the policy,” the official further noted. The outgoing minister, recently came to prominence when a former governor of Warrap state alleged that Acuil had threatened his life during a political power struggle. Lewis Anei Madut, now an advisor in the country’s ministry of culture and heritage alleges that there is “deliberate attempt” by the former labour and public service minister to politically destroy him. Acuil, however, denies the accusation and instead says Madut, whom she defeated in last year’s election simply had a grudge against her. A renowned gender activist, Acuil, an MP for Warrap’s Tonj county, holds a BA in international relations from the United States International University in Nairobi, Kenya. She was also a co-founding member of the Kenya-based Sudanese Women Association. In 2002, she was awarded the prestigious Inter Action’s 2002 Humanitarian Award; an accolade annually given to an individual who has demonstrated “extraordinary” leadership in support of non-governmental organizations and the people they serve in the developing world. Five years later, Acuil and Margaret Alva, an Indian national both received the Vital Voices Global Leadership Award for their humanitarian work. (ST) http://www.sudantribune.com/Confusion-over-resignation-of,40584 END2 ______________________ John Ashworth Sudan Advisor [email protected] +254 725 926 297 (Kenya mobile) +249 919 695 362 (Sudan mobile) +27 82 853 3556 (South Africa mobile) +44 750 304 1790 (UK/international) +88 216 4334 0735 (Thuraya satphone) PO Box 52002 - 00200, Nairobi, Kenya This is a personal e-mail address and the contents do not necessarily reflect the views of any organisation -- The content of this message does not necessarily reflect John Ashworth's views. Unless explicitly stated otherwise, John Ashworth is not the author of the content and the source is always cited. You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "sudan-john-ashworth" group. 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