Inspector General of SSPS General Acuil Tito Madut (right) during the interview.[©Tom Kwanya]
JUBA, 08 March 2010 – During an interview in his office in Juba Monday, General Madut assured the citizens that the SSPS will serve them diligently in spite of the many challenges it faces.
Some of the challenges include poor payment package, inadequate facilities, inadequate budget and poor training among others.
“A constable, for instance, gets 13 Sudanese Pounds a month as house allowance which is grossly inadequate, especially in Juba and other major urban centres”, he said.
The Inspector General explained that the SSPS is trying to accommodate all its activities within its budgetary allocation.
“Security is very expensive, especially in a country just emerging from war”, he explained.
General Madut also reported that the SSPS is in the process of establishing a police academy in Juba to facilitate better training for the members of the force, especially the former Sudan Peoples' Liberation Army (SPLA) combatants who form three-quarters of the SSPS.
“The former combatants need to be transformed from military mentality to a friendly police force capable of serving South Sudan with dignity and discipline. The force needs language training to facilitate migration from Arabic or English platform”, he said.
The Inspector General also reported that security has improved lately and that the SSPS and other law enforcement agencies in the country will sustain this progress.
He, however, regretted that the past general disarmament searches in Juba had been abused by some rogue elements in the SSPS to harass and loot from the public.
He assured the public that this will never be allowed to happen again adding that the searches have been suspended until these concerns are addressed adequately.
General Madut urged all political parties and candidates competing in the forthcoming elections to maintain peace adding that “South Sudan is tired of war”.
He encouraged any parties and individuals with security concerns to get in touch with his office to enable the SSPS to address the concerns promptly.