The Vacant Governmental Posts of South Sudan

By Gatweach Naath,

June 12, 2016(Nyamilepedia) —– It became an official routine in the government circles in the new nation to create unnecessary posts in order to accommodate some friend, relatives and followers in order to give them a chance to participate in the decision making in the country. Among the unnecessary posts are the posts created at the national level and those who are created at the states levels. These unnecessary posts are:-

1- Presidential security advisor.

2- State security advisor.

3- State Deputy of the secretary general.

To me, these governmental posts are vacant in the real sense, because all the above mentioned titles are not the right titles in the right place, they have nothing to do to the country and to those who created these jobs and appointed the irrelevant people to run these unnecessary jobs.

For example, what the presidential security advisor who has no security background so ever, can do to the nation and the president? Is the president really in need of an ordinary person to be his security advisor? What type of security advice H.E may get from that normal south Sudan citizen?

Some may think that Iam against the presidential advisor as an individual. Frankly, I do not even know him and do not have any problem with him or the president who appointed him. In fact, I do not like the creation of this unnecessary vacant (accommodation) post because the president is not in need of such advisor.

The real presidential advisors are:-

1-The two directors of national and external security.

2-The minster of national security in the office of the president.

3-Minister of defense.

4-The chief of general staff.

5- The minister of interior.

6-The state’s governors.

In addition to these officials H.E, can add native chiefs, fishermen and charcoal workers who may know more than any other ordinary man in the town.

To me, these short listed government officials are the real security advisors for the president according to their jobs descriptions and titles. Anything aside from this is only a friendship accommodation.

The ironic point in the work of the security advisor is that where do he collects his security information/s?

Again is there any professional security personnel among the above-mentioned who may volunteer willingly to give his personal security report to an ordinary person at first in order to be forwarded to the big boss by that person who is a guest and intruder in the security career by running a post which is considered to be vacant because he is not the right man in the right place by profession. This ordinary man was not an active or retired police, security, military officer before filling this vacant post.

An advisor in an Islamic state should fulfill the following characteristics and should:-

1. a) Have a good knowledge about what he is advising for; an educated advisor is always preferable.
2. b) Not be a needy person who is running after his personal gains and should be neutral and should not turn one day to be an insecurity advisor before the end of his duty, and if he is a respectable person he should resign if compelled by any working conditions.
3. c) Not have a hidden agenda of hate against anybody or a group and favourism for anybody or group according to his mental change.

By examining these points, what category the presidential security falls?

You could briefly refer also to the so called state security advisor/s, to see whether these posts are given to the right people or not.

The second unnecessary governmental post which I considered to be a vacant post is the post of the deputy of state secretary general. The post of secretary general is created by the colonial authority to be filled by a senior administrative officer in the province which is now the state. His deputy when away was then and up to now, is the inspector of the headquarters, who is the director of administration and finance in the headquarters or the general secretariat of any state government.

This was the case for many years in the Upper Nile state, but the former governor of the Upper Nile state, the late Mongo Ajak, suddenly created new vacant (accommodation) post of deputy secretary general by appointing his office manager after leaving the office (Mongo) to run the new unnecessary post of deputy S.G. in order to maintain his salary and a government house.

To me, and according to the department of public service, no official job description for this post of the deputy S.G, because we have already the S.G and the director of administration and finance in the state’s general secretariat. So, no work for the deputy S.G.in the general secretariat.

You can continue analyzing this issue alone as an intellectual/s, and see if there is any legal ground in creating these unnecessary posts in order to accommodate relative, followers and friends.

In conclusion let us also look at the whole train of the appointed advisors whose jobs are parallel to the relevant (10) ten ministers. For example you find advisors on education, agriculture, defense, foreign affairs and other ministries which are administered by capable ministers. Iam sure some posts from these accommodation positions, will be vacant governmental posts later if there will be no clear official jobs descriptions.

The author can be reached at stehpenpuoch@gmail.com