Controversial job posting rattles Sudan’s labor ministry
March 24, 2013 (KHARTOUM) – An uproar triggered by a job advertisement posted this week in a local newspaper to recruit Sudanese women to work in Kuwait, opened the door to allegations of massive fraud and corruption in a government body. Sudan’s Minister of Human Resources Development and Labor Ishraqa Sayed Mahmoud The Minister of Human Resources Development and Labor Ishraqa Sayed Mahmoud, has accused four members in her ministry’s workers’ union of standing behind this job posting to pressure her into backing down from her decision to strictly prohibit collecting fees without the issuance of an official receipt known as (Form-15). The ad which was published by the ministry and appeared in the widely distributed pro-government al-Intibaha newspaper said it seeks "good looking" and "fair skinned" women between the ages of 21-35 to work as receptionists in the Arab Gulf state of Kuwait. The applicants who responded to the ad were required to send 3 colored full-body photographs showing from different angles and also furnish information about their height, weight as well as details about their health history and past surgeries. The ministry came under fire from media, preachers and prominent figures for allowing a “racist” ad which implied solicitation for sex workers. Some columnists even called for the resignation of the minister. Al-Intibaha newspaper has since published an apology and the recruiting agency was suspended. Minister Mahmoud who spoke at a press conference on Sunday said that a statement released by the workers’ union accusing her of approving the advertisement is strong proof of the union’s role in the posting. “I won’t back down [from requiring Form-15], this makes me more resolute and determined”, she said and underscored that she will fight for the peoples’ rights even if it leads to “my departure from the ministry” in her war against what she described as interest groups that were affected by her decision. Mahmoud disclosed that an internal investigation revealed that the former Chief Financial and Administrative Officer of the ministry was involved in a massive corruption scandal. According to her, the senior official committed (14) financial and administrative violations, the least of which was receiving a monthly incentive of 26,000 Sudanese pounds (SDG). She pointed out that these violations were referred to the attorney general and Inspector general for investigation. The minister went on to accuse some members of the worker’s union of illegally owning recruitment offices which she claimed raised suspicions that the ministry is issuing bogus employment contracts and charging huge amounts of money. She qualified her statements however, saying that not all union members are corrupt. “The corrupt members are only four” Mahmoud said. The minister disclosed that 300,000 SDG is collected monthly inside the ministry illegally without (Form-15) receipt, but noted that this money does not go to the staff members. (ST) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "South Sudan Info - The Kob" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
