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Salary delay haunts Kiir, Nunu

By Yiep Joseph

 

Ongoing delays in salary payments for civil servants and organized forces were a key topic of discussion during a meeting Friday between President Salva Kiir and Jemma Nunu Kumba, Speaker of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly.

The meeting, held at the presidential palace, addressed several issues, with the persistent salary arrears taking center stage.

While the government has made repeated verbal commitments to resolve the issue, concrete solutions remain elusive, leaving many public sector employees facing financial hardship.

“President Salva Kiir Mayardit and the Speaker of the National Assembly Jemma Nunu Kumba met to discuss vital issues regarding activities of the Parliament and the salaries of civil servants and organized forces” The statement partly read.

According to the statement from the presidential press unit, the two leaders discuss several matters related to parliament as well as South Sudan as a whole.

While the lawmakers are expected to resume their business after a long recess, Speaker Nunu was said to have briefed President Kiir ahead of the reopening of the assembly sitting in April.

“The meeting comes as Parliament is currently on recess, with legislators expected to reconvene in April,” it read.
Nunu commended President Kiir for his commitment toward peace, justified by the resumption of the ongoing Tumaini Peace Initiative in Kenya.

“Speaking to the press, Speaker Nunu lauded President Kiir for his unwavering efforts to foster peace, security, and stability in South Sudan, reflecting on the progress of the ongoing Tumaini initiative in Nairobi between the government and opposition groups,” the statement read.

Speaker Nunu also underlined the commitment of Parliament to work closely with the executive to ensure the government delivers on its constitutional mandate of meeting the aspirations of the citizens ahead of the slated polls.

Last year, minister of finance and planning, Dr. Marial Dongrin, consoled civil servants by announcing the release of one month’s salary.

South Sudan’s wage bill has been a contentious issue, with estimates showing that the monthly salary requirement for civil servants stands at SSP 85 billion.

Despite the National Revenue Authority’s reports of sufficient non-oil revenue collection, salary releases have been inconsistent.

Untill now civil servants and organized forces have not been paid a full year’s salary.

This Month President Salva Kiir directed the Ministry of Finance and Planning to allocate revenues from Blocks 3 and 7 in the Upper Nile region to be used to clear salary arrears and support essential government operations.

Kiir, who is also the Chairperson of the Sudan’s People Liberation Movement (SPLM), issued these directives during the party’s meeting held at SPLM House in Juba.

The move aims to address delays in the payment of salaries of government employees who so far gone for nearly 12 months without salary.

Peter Lam Both, SPLM Secretary General, said President Kiir ordered the Ministry of Finance to prioritize timely payment of civil servants’ salaries.

“The rest of the resources, oil revenue resources from blocks 3 and 7, will have to be used for salaries and for government operations,” Lam told State Broadcaster (SSBC).

Lam said the President’s order also called for close supervision of funds allocated for infrastructure projects, a sector often plagued by mismanagement.

On January 7, the Minister of Petroleum, Puot Kang Chol announced the restart of oil production in Blocks 3 and 7, which will transported through Port Sudan after production halted in February due to gelling within the pipeline and insecurity due to the ongoing conflict in neighboring Sudan.

 

 

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