By Philip Buda Ladu
Transitional National Legislative Assembly has passed the Fiscal and Financial Allocation and Monitoring Commission Bill, 2024, paving the way for the establishment of an independent commission responsible for national budget control through implementation of the appropriation act.
In December 2023, the Minister of Justice and Constitutional Affairs, Justice Ruben Madol Arol, tabled the Fiscal and Financial Allocation Monitoring Commission Bill 2023 in its first reading.
The bill is to provide for the establishment of an independent commission to ensure transparency regarding the allocation of nationally collected funds to the states and counties.
In accordance with Regulation 110(2) of the Conduct of Business Regulations 2011(as amended 2021) of the TNLA, the deputy chairperson of the standing specialized committee of finance and planning, Susan Thomas, tabled the Fiscal and Financial Allocation Monitoring Commission Bill 2024 in its second reading stage during Monday’s assembly sitting No. 40/2024.
Prior to the second reading stage, the Committee on Finance and Planning sent its members to Kenya to explore how the Kenyan’s Commission on Revenue Allocation and the Kenya Office of the Controller of Budget share the national resources among the counties (states).
Furthermore, the Committee conducted in Juba a one-day public hearing attended by the Chairperson of the Commission with his technical team.
The necessary inputs generated from the benchmarking visit report to Kenya and public hearing concerns were incorporated to enrich this bill.
The three Committees of Finance and Planning, Public Accounts and Legislation, and Justice worked on the bill to conform to Article 4.11.2 of the Revitalized Agreement (R-ARCSS) and Article 181 (1) of the Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan 2011 (as amended), which grants the national government the authority to establish an independent commission.
The bill consists of five (5) chapters and forty-six (46) sections.
Meanwhile, the Committee scrutinized and analyzed the bill in consultation with the Chairperson of the Fiscal and Financial Allocation and Monitoring Commission, who made positive inputs as reflected in the amendments to the bill.
In their joint report to the parliament, the committees therefore made the several recommendations to the August House for deliberations and adoption.
First, the need to consider a fixed term limit of six (6) years in office for those appointed to commissions and independent agencies in the Republic of South Sudan, as is the case in East African Community member states.
Second, the need to set the national annual resource sharing modality with the sub-levels of governments (vertical and horizontal resource sharing).
Third, the need for the Council of States to determine, by resolution, the basis for allocating revenues among state, administrative area, and county governments.
And lastly, the need for the Council of States to set parameters as the basis of revenue allocation to state, administrative, and county governments, for instance, population, level of poverty, basic share, health index, land area (size of the state, administrative area, and county), road index, urban index, development index, physical responsibility, etc.
“I humbly urge the August House to deliberate and pass the Bill entitled “Fiscal and Financial Allocation and Monitoring Commission Bill, 2024” in its Second, Third, and Final Reading Stage with all observations, amendments, and recommendations” Hon. Thomas submitted to the house.
“And I request the august House to suspend regulation (106) of TNLA Conduct of Business Regulations, 2011 (Amended 2021) and to invoke Regulation (100) to pass this Bill in one day,” she added.
The MPs unanimously passed the bill from the second reading stage to the third and to the fourth and final reading stages with a great acclamation by the majority members of the august house, outshining minority voices who were demanding a thorough debate of the bill.
Rt. Hon. Speaker Jemma Nunu Kumba then ruled that the majority of MPs have passed the bill from the second to third and fourth and final reading stages chapter by chapter in totality, making the bill now ratified and awaiting the President’s assent into law within 30 days from the day of its submission for signing.