By Philip Buda Ladu
President Salva Kiir has poured out his frustrations as to why he fired former Minister of Finance and Economic Planning Athian Diing Athian.
Kiir accused Minister Athian Diing Athian of not feeding him with accurate and timely financial update about government’s finances and also fault him of failing to regularly pay civil servants and soldiers’ salaries.
“Agak Achuil, I have two things to tell you; one, don’t follow the things that your predecessors did! Don’t follow them –and the things that those people did was; they didn’t tell me how much money was there in the government coffers” he said after the swearing in ceremony of the newly appointed Finance Minister on Saturday.
“The money is under me and if the minister cannot report to me about what is in the coffers of the government then to whom will he report to” Kiir questioned his previous staff’s acts.
He accused his previous political appointee of misappropriating public funds for their personal gains being wasted outside the country.
“One will go open his private bank account elsewhere in unknown place and siphoning government coffers, the country’s money is being diverted there. He goes and builds skyscrapers in other places this is what my previous staff have been doing.
The President also urged the new minister of finance to eradicate the malpractice of bribery in the Ministry of Finance saying Minister Agak Achuil should stop the issue of staff demanding for some percentage before approving payment of business contractors.
“If there is someone who can be bribed because of his work that he has come to serve the people; why does he want to be bribed? This thing, you kill it. If you spot anyone who engage in bribery and you think you can’t dismiss that person you come to me I will dismiss him or her” Kiir directed.
He assured minister Achuil of his full support arguing that he (Achuil) shouldn’t be deceived by any lobbyists out there that they are the ones who brought him into the position.
“Don’t listen to any lobbyists who say they are the ones who brought you, no! There’s nobody who came and talked to me (President) that you bring this young man, no it’s me alone who decided to bring Agak Achuil”.