South Sudan army lambasts corruption in military spending
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January 27, 2017 (JUBA) - South Sudanese army on Friday angrily
reacted to a report by a Washington-based human watchdog group
accusing the military of looting national resources in total lack of
accountability and transparency.
JPEG - 21.1 kb
A SPLA soldier stands in front of a vehicle in Juba on December 20,
2013. (Photo Reuters/Goran Tomasevic)
Enough Project estimated that more than 100,000 "ghost" soldiers could
be on the military’s payroll, allowing for commanders and military
leaders to boost their incomes or reputations.
Army spokesperson Colonel Santo Dominic Chol denied in an exclusive
interview with Sudan Tribune on Friday the charges, calling the
findings “baseless” and mere propaganda machine to tarnish the
institutional image of the South Sudanese army.
“It is irresponsible and reckless" to talk about this nonsense when
people who spew these malicious lie and propaganda, know what the SPLA
do to ensure stability and avoid the country sliding in anarchy.
People who say these rubbishes show a lack of appreciation of the kind
of work we do as the national army”, said Col. Chol, claiming the army
has its ways of reporting.
The military officer acknowledged that military expenditure was
rising, but said this was due to an upsurge in military operations in
defend of the country in areas where rebels are active.
“So they want the army not to be funded, and when we are funded, we
should come out to say this is what we have procured with the budget?
Where in the world you have the army go and announced weapons they
have purchased, tell me”, asked Col. Chol when reached on Friday.
The Enough Project report which analyzed violent kleptocracy as “a
system of state in which ruling networks and commercial partners
hijack governing institutions for the purpose of resource extraction
and for the security of the regime. The ruling networks, it explains,
utilize varying levels of violence to maintain power and repress
dissenting voices.
The report published on Thursday, gives details of massive corruption
within South Sudan’s army. It notes that corrupt activities within the
army include procurement fraud, irregular spending unchecked by
civilian authority, and bloated troop rosters featuring thousands of
“ghost” (non-existent) soldiers.
Brian Adeba, Associate Director of Policy at the Enough Project, said
“The effect of corruption in proliferating insecurity in South Sudan
cannot be underestimated. The country’s politicians can only begin to
realize the fruits of security for their citizens if they tackle the
graft in the army.”
The report describes how despite widespread suffering in South Sudan,
including famine-like conditions and the severe economic hardships
South Sudanese people experience, massive amounts of the country’s
dwindling funds continue to go to the South Sudan People’s Liberation
Army (SPLA), where they are diverted and misspent without
accountability.
Jacinth Planer, report editor and Editor/Researcher at the Enough
Project noted that “On paper, South Sudan’s legal and institutional
frameworks enshrine civilian, not military leadership. The SPLA is
meant to protect, defend, and hold itself accountable to the South
Sudanese people. But the destructive system and practices that have
developed now instead work against these purposes, and the South
Sudanese people who face great personal risks have paid the highest
price. The international community should steadfastly support the
South Sudanese people and especially those who try to uphold the
institutions that are being undermined today.”
The report finds that within what enough identifies as a violent
kleptocratic system in South Sudan, a lack of financial oversight over
military expenditure, combined with heavy influence by political
appointees, has created opportunities for mass corruption in the SPLA.
John Prendergast, Founding Director at the Enough Project observed
that "There is no accountability for the looting of state resources in
South Sudan, especially with military spending. The missing piece of
an effective international response is the creation of leverage to
shift the calculations of these violent kleptocrats from war to peace,
from mass corruption—including in the military—to good governance and
accountability in spending. The incentives that reward violence and
theft must be changed. The international community needs to help make
war costlier than peace for the leaders and create targeted and
personal consequences for corrupt war-mongers.”
(ST)
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27 January 23:55, by barbayo
Enough project should be close in South Sudan and its members
should all be arrest and i will provide list for those , members
repondre message
28 January 06:19, by Eastern
Barbayo,
Go ahead and close it, morons!
repondre message
28 January 08:12, by Mayom County Troops
Yes the country leadership is full with corruption from roof
to bottom ,why not agreements are not to be withdrawal from South
Sudan govt ?
repondre message
28 January 19:33, by Dinka-Defender-General
Guys, half of the information is right and half incorrect. For
example, not all the SPLA institutions have ghost names. I don’t have
ghost names or some of the commanders I know never use ghost names as
"Enough Project" stated. Why don’t go ahead and name the institutions
that have ghost names in their lists. Anyway, every country around the
world has corruption.
repondre message
28 January 01:05, by jur_likang_a_ likan’g
You can arrest Enough Project members in South Sudan but you
should also know that you will never arrest TRUTH that permeates
everywhere like air. Come back to the Truth.
repondre message
28 January 01:27, by Gabriel KK
Yes there is corruption in all government institutions in South
Sudan but I doubt the figure put forward by Enough Project. 100,000
ghost names is an exaggeration. A true number could be something
between 5000-10000 if I am right. Anyway who is listening in this
Country where those in authority put themselves first rather than the
Country or poor individuals.
repondre message
28 January 01:30, by Gabriel KK
A time will come when everyone will be asked to explain how
they acquired their wealth.
repondre message
28 January 04:37, by Ayuiu Makuac Lam
The fact should not be denied, why everything is deny? © fighting
is denying,© corruption is denying, what will not be deny? south Sudan
will not and ever be stable if visible things are denied.
repondre message
28 January 06:22, by Eastern
Ayuiu,
I like your tone these days; you have now seen the deception,
theft, murder, reckless waging of war by SPLA squandering the
country’s resources which people like Barbayo want to be kept under
wraps. SPLA is a big liar and a murderous thief, that I know!
repondre message
28 January 06:59, by Kuch
Mr. Eastern,
The SPLA deserves to use the resources if at all there is
any. Since they are fighting animals bidding for the Americans,
Europe, juus and some of their arab masters that they always run to
for supplies.
After since the current SPLA is considered to be a tribal
militia and all the oil wells except one well in former Unity state
belongs to Nuers to which you fellows even destroyed>>>
repondre message
28 January 07:03, by Kuch
Then why do you fellows again complain of resources
that don’t even belong to you, but the same people (the Dinkas/Jiengs)
that you fellows don’t want? People have telling you fellows all along
to stop your useless armed rebellion and let start ways to develop our
country, but some of you fellows have closed their minds in a way that
they think>>>
repondre message
28 January 07:10, by Kuch
they can have it both ways, to not want the
Dinkas/Jiengs and to get the resources that come out from the
Jiengs/Dinkas territories. Fellows, if truth is to be told, then you
fellows are fighting a losing game.
Imagine the whole Dinka/Jieng that you fellow
don’t want give power to day and took up arms against your so-called
Riek Machar government, l will bet chap, it will not take a week
before>>
repondre message
28 January 07:15, by Kuch
the same Dinkas/Jiengs that you don’t want
take that damn power from you fellows by force if they want. But that
is not the case, the Dinkas/Jiengs are not that fools fellows, we know
how deal with difficult issues otherwise, the whole South Sudan would
have been arabized and islamized if were to be throwing tantrums like
babies and fight useless wars like our Nuers, Shilluks and some
Equatorians>
repondre message
28 January 07:20, by Kuch
Some people in South Sudan and indeed many
of the online trolls are not even South Sudanese, but bunch of misfits
from the North Sudan and other neighboring countries that keep
trolling thinking there may be some ways that South Sudan would again
be re-united with North Sudan. Good luck to them. That is not gona
happens even in million years.
repondre message
28 January 07:33, by Kuch
That is purposely because of our oil
fields and that is all. All these nonsense of humanitarian, aid and
peacekeeping and genocide are just veneers and pretexts. But they have
some of their fools like their Riek Machar, Pagan Amuom, Lam Akol,
Majak Agoot et al that they have taken hostage to use as their tools
to crawl themselves into our country>>>
repondre message
28 January 06:24, by Eastern
Let the Americans just close the tap on the US Dollars and let us
see if Juba can continue to wage the reckless war funded with Chinese
Yuan, morons!
repondre message
28 January 07:25, by Kuch
Mr. Eastern,
I can see your frustration chap, but know this. The US, the
UK, their UN, their creepy NGOs and some of their allies in between
will never touch anything in our country as far as we are concerned.
The US, the UK, their UN, creepy NGOs and some of their allies in
between have been your useless armed rebellion as their bargaining
chip to crawl themselves into our country to come>>>
repondre message
28 January 07:29, by Kuch
and plunder our country like what they currently doing in
Libya, Iraq, CAR and Mali. Do you fellows know why the US, the UK,
France and their allies are not even talking about issues to do with
North Sudan, Libya, Yemen and other countries these days, but they so
fixated on our country and our people?>>>
repondre message
28 January 07:36, by Kuch
Some clueless fellows like some Equatorians and some
Nuers are being used by the CIA, MI6 and others as their pawns/proxies
to fight the corporate America, Europe, their UN and their allies in
between just they used the then so-called free Libyan army, free
Syrian army and others>>>
repondre message
28 January 07:40, by Kuch
on the pretext of an imaginary democracy. As I
said before, our country has been taken hostage by the biggest
criminals on earth, the corporate America, Europe and the UN because
they have found some fools among us. But we are back, they will never
ever get anything in our country>>>
repondre message
28 January 07:47, by Kuch
The US, the UK and their UN want to rule our
country through the UN and African Union and they are using terrorism
through their puppets/stooges like Riek Machar and Lam Akol criminals
to to do their bidding have a look on this link chap:http:
//www.victorianweb.org/history/empire/opiumwars/opiumwars1.html but
they are wasting their times and our times>>>
repondre message
28 January 07:52, by Kuch
As for our country use the Chinese Yuan,
almost countries in Africa, Asia and many other countries won’t using
the US dollars pretty soon and no one will miss that damn dollar. You
fellows are behind and you are playing games with our country and our
people when you fellows don’t even know what is that you are really
fighting for?>>>
repondre message
28 January 07:57, by Kuch
For other South Sudanese people who
know you fellows like the palms of our hands, you are letting your
selves being used by our external enemies just like you were used by
our arch enemy, North Sudan against us in 1990th to early 2000th, and
you fellows were paid with food rations to fight the SPLA. But this
time, it is the corporate America, the UK, their UN, their creepy
NGOs>>>
repondre message
28 January 08:02, by Kuch
and some of their allies in
between that using you fellows as their pawns/proxies to fight their
dirty war and they want to paying you with the same food rations
(humanitarians and aid) just like the North Sudan did. Fellows, here
in South Sudan, we know who is who. All these rubbishes of freedom
fighting and looting of resources shouldn’t have to be fought by armed
rebellion, but through ballot>>
repondre message
28 January 08:07, by Kuch
boxes. Salva Kiir has not even
overstayed his welcome yet like many other leaders, but the impatience
of some sociopaths like Riek Machar and his sponsors out our country
brought this mess. Not all the Dinkas/Jiengs even want Salva Kiir in
power indefinitely, but the way some hooligans in Equatotria and
Nuerland often scream the Dinkas/Jiengs>>>
repondre message
28 January 08:13, by Kuch
name isn’t helpful, but to
goad the Dinkas/Jiengs to their fighting modes. Anyway fellows, we
always you fellows to chuck out the crap and let us move on. Let us
reconcile our selves and build our country. No one is going to
reconcile us, but our own selves. All those rubbishes in foreign
hotels and bars are not for the benefit of our country>>
repondre message
28 January 08:18, by Kuch
and our people, but
for the benefits and interests of others...case in point, the then
so-called compromised peace agreement (CPA II). It was nothing to do
with our country and our people, but the hand over of our country to
corporate America, the UK, Norway, the UN and the then
IGAD-PLUS----that was a NEW WORLD ORDER UN government to take over our
country??>>>
repondre message
28 January 08:22, by Kuch
That damn CPA II
was not negotiated by anyone, the government of South Sudan or Riek
Machar, but the damn paper was drafted by the corporate America, the
UK, the UN, Norway and the then IGAD-PLUS countries and pushed into
South Sudanese government throat to sign to which it refused and later
signed it with a lot of reservations>>>
repondre message
28 January
08:28, by Kuch
Our well
learned fellows like Riek Machar and Pagan Amuom signed the damn paper
and disappeared to America, because he knew he did sell our country
foreign countries and their interests, but Riek Machar of old didn’t
even show any slightest shred of shame of what he did. He even wanted
the deployment of foreign troops into our country to come>>>
repondre message
28 January
09:05, by king kush
Kuch
Lol take a
deep breath brother it’s going to be ok,stick to the topic please you
are all over.
repondre message
28
January 15:34, by jubaone
King Kush,
Much
desperately needs a little break and a cup of cold water. He has
serious problems bedeviling him and his heart ? is deeply troubled.
Perhaps he should go to his luak in Kuajok or Cuibet to get some fresh
air and be reenergized. He may develop irreversible depression.
repondre message
28 January 08:54, by Mopedi
Eastern
Not only Dollars tap, first the South Sudanese embassies in
the USA, BRITAIN and all other Troika countries be closed because
there is no political master in SS they act unilaterally as if they
are not part of this planet each of them know about the corruption in
the army, some forces are not paid for nearly two years where are
their money?
repondre message
28 January 09:00, by Mopedi
SPLA has created a new generation which shall not honestly
compete in the political market,all their children are smeared with
blood of innocent citizen, their houses are covered with the same
blood, their children are studying using money for the death one
therefore, all are cursed.
repondre message
28 January 09:10, by Mopedi
For those thinking there shall be no change in SS they
are passively deceived by this evil government, the revolution has
started for good whether with Dr. Riek or without him it must go on.
Mr hanger has come with heavy weapons that Kiir forces can not manage,
tomorrow sickness shall come to support this revolution to crash
Kiir’s regime
repondre message
28 January 09:28, by king kush
Ok enough is enough to the enough project.
Where did you guys come up with this number.?
1 Bilpham didn’t release any info regarding the
Number of SPLA soldiers.?
2 how many soldiers have been observed from the
Spla/io. Who pays them.?
3 do you guys have solid proof, of the real number vs
The incorrect payroll number.
4 how did you obtain these info, for example did
you pay some people to get it
repondre message
28 January 09:39, by king kush
If you answer yes, then how credible are they can
They be lying.
5 did you try to relay this information to Bilpham
and the presidency before you came out to the public
With it. If no, why (what is your motivation).
If you answer these 5 questions I have 5 more questions but they
depend on you answer of the first five.
repondre message
28 January 09:42, by Dr. Rich
This corruption issue is opened even if one is kiir supporter.
just look many nuers solders have defected Dr.Riek yet the payroll 4
soldiers remains thesame. instead there would be enough funds 4 our
country 2 improve our economy yet it as worsen
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