By Philip Buda Ladu
The Committees of Finance and Economy at the Transitional National Legislature that were mandated by the August house to scrutinized the 287 billion South Sudanese Pounds 2021/2022 fiscal year budget and report to the parliament within 21 days have defaulted the timeline.
The Minister of Finance and Planning, Agak Achuil Lual presented the long overdue budget to the National Legislature on Wednesday February, 2nd 2022, and since then lawmakers are yet to deliberate on the SSP 287 billion financial year budget as they wait for the committees’ reports.
Jemma Nunu Kumba, the Right Honorable Speaker of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) upon presentation of the National Budget to the parliament by the Finance Minister, she committed the budget to the committees of finance and economics in the two houses.
Nunu urged the committees in the two August Houses to scrutinize the budget break it down and report back to the parliament within three weeks’ period or 21 days however the work of the Committees is behind schedule as they have not reported back to the parliament.
The communities are supposed to report to the August House within 21 days in accordance with Regulation (1)(3),4 of the Transitional National Legislature Conduct of Business 2013 as amended 2021 to enable Members of Parliament to thoroughly discuss the fiscal budget before they can approve and pass it for action.
Based on the 21 days’ reporting timeframe, apparently the parliamentary committees for Finance and Economy would have submitted back their studies on the budget for further deliberation by the lawmakers at least by latest the fourth week of February but it didn’t happen as mandated.
The Public Financial Management and Accountability Act, 2011 provides for forty-five days in which the parliament is to pass the Budget. And with the current look of things the chances are slim that the parliament will pass the budget within the specified 45 days as cited in the law.
John Aganny Deng, the Chairperson of the parliamentary Information Committee at the RTNLA told No.1 Citizen Daily Newspaper on Phone Monday that the committees have finished their work and forwarded the reports to the clusters level for compilation.
“It has gone out from the committee level; it has already gone to the cluster level now it’s already been filed up today (Monday) and then on the 9th it will be tabled next Wednesday we have already finished it” Hon. Aganny confirmed to No. 1 Citizen Daily Newspaper.
President Salva Kiir Mayardit in August 2021 during his inauguration of the peace parliament urged the Reconstituted Transitional National Legislative Assembly (RTNLA) to urgently debate and pass the national budget.
It took more than 5 months for the 2021/2022 fiscal year budget to be presented to the Reconstituted Transitional National Legislature (TNL) since it inauguration by the President in August last year.