Another Financial Scam at South Sudan Police Force

By Isaiah Abraham

(Gurtong edited and published) -The new nation to be in few weeks-time has started to govern badly as far as corruption is concerned. There is no better words to describe what is happening at the top leadership in Juba, perpetrated by a few who aren’t ashamed of themselves, this nation and image of their party. The war against corruption, sadly, is getting murkier each passing day. The hues and confidence that has been exuberantly displayed by Southern leaders about zero tolerance to corruption at public forum should now safely be replaced by government tolerance to corruption.

I’m saying this because since the formation of an Inquiry to look into another financial scandal at the heart of the Southern Sudan Police Force (say Training Centre at Rajaf in Juba), there are fears and signs that the money will not be recovered after all, or people involved or implicated in the scandal will not be prosecuted. The word goes round that the suspects are likely going to escape the wrath of law under dubious circumstances, the same way other prominent figures before them on the same financial crimes, from the same group escaped the law and are scot free to date.

Please dear Mr President, your government is dying before your watch in the name of being just nice. There are no nice managers, you got to crack the whip unless the South has sacred cows or special people that are untouchable, which in our case as a nation aren’t. Why on earth should your men preach water but sip wine?

Mr President, sir, some of us sometime get blunt when issues at hand are at stake and need attention. I have no doubt about you being a good leader, and pray the journey you started long time ago is coming to an end next month.

But dear President, corruption has dented your administration, although sometime we blow things out of proportion and start to generalize. The truth is that there is corruption and unless something is done, the money will go to few individuals around the corridors of power. I beseech you therefore to show the Police Chief and two of his deputies the door, or at least suspension until the Inquiry gives it final verdict. The verdict however should reflect the true findings and not the other way round.

If you fail to act then there is already this charge that your administration is selective for those to prosecute and those immune to the law. Now is the challenge because the men are said to be your home boys, should you miss this chance to show justice, then the public will take you double-speak leader that says what he doesn’t practice.

How about others that aren’t related to you, where will they find justice when selectively some are sentenced to ten years because of few hundred pounds while million pounds criminals go unperturbed with their normal business of acquiring more land, building more villas, buying expensive cars even in foreign land?

History of your administration is shoddier with corrupt practices. Failure to prosecute is a major let down of your government. Wasn’t senior SPLA man caught in 2009 with money in Heathrow-London with Southern Sudanese money in his normal brief case? Someone asked the same question sometime last month. Of course that Comrade didn’t steal it, he was given, but who authorizes that minister or undersecretary to make that huge financial spending to an individual? The government could have push for answers and if the answer was the removal of the minister leaving behind accomplices, then correction wasn’t done for a mistake not to be repeated over again.

Why didn’t the government form an Inquiry over the where about of dura contract, a situation that was stopped for payment by the current minister for Finance? I have been asking myself this question hundred times.

How about UNCHR repatriation money where the then chief of the chiefs in the North was adversely mentioned? Has anything done against the old man- the very one I see daily sitting comfortably near his business at Hai Malakiya in Juba- if not why not?

Dr Pauline and Mr Luke/Mr. Swaka, why do you go for small fish leaving behind sharks to loot at will? Don’t you care that the public is watching closely what the officials are doing in their service to the people of Southern Sudan. Look, a thief in the bush can still be one after the liberation and even worse! You can’t talk of development when the money goes to few individuals who are known to have been quick to dip their dirty fingers to public resources, scrupulous who have no fear of God in their hearts.

For the people of the South to start believing in this government, the president needs to be reminded that the public confidence is eroded due to corruption in the system. It is real, and everyday people wake up with bad news about another leader coming down. It was Dr Josephine a couple of weeks ago, and before her were ‘sacred cows’ and ‘untouchables’ from a certain mafia, and now the Police Chief or his assistants, when this government going to wake up?

Well, for the image of our people, for this particular case and generally for the government of the people of Southern Sudan, the President needs to do the following (I have mentioned one earlier): remove Police Inspector for the investigation not to be interfered with. He ought to overhaul Finance, Auditing Chamber and Anti-Corruption Unit. I want to see non Dinka in Finance to spare me ‘chibak’ in an official interaction at that Ministry. Maybe not Nuer either. There are individuals whose home is Finance, you never know whether they sleep there or just wake up earlier in the morning to jam Finance for personal assistances. Auditors too are sleeping on their jobs, and their tops are ever at Nimule Hotel galloping John Walker like fish.

The lady at the Anti-Corruption however is sharp and has a clear mind but her hands are tied between serving the people or the government. She has tried but I think she needs to be empowered and the best place to start is Parliament to give her Prosecution Powers. The neighbouring Kenya is moving towards that end.

The little money mainly from Oil Proceeds, since Tax Money always end up in the bank accounts of a few, must be protected. Police Officers at a junior level were acting on the orders from above. The bug is at the Police top not anywhere.

But the fight against corruption must not be ethnicized, tribalized or politicized. The perpetrators could be group among one tribe and not the whole tribe, unless someone misses a point or simply knows the argument but what to use this unfortunate practice to fix one community. The South would be healed if we all unite and shame these individuals among our communities. If the President is corrupt, (fortunately he isn’t) we will tell him so. Our beloved Vice President too isn’t corrupt.

Corruption fight to be exact my people must be fought at a high moral ground; first by a person whose life should set an exemplary tunes to others. If leaders are only seen engaging on the vice under the pretext of being there and in charge, and not caring about schools, roads and hospitals, then we have a huge problem.

What had happened at Rajaf Training Centre could also be the case at Bilpam Military Headquarter. May be a whistle blower is shying away from exposing anything there.

Ordinarily though, there ought to be general auditing done to ensure the money goes to intended activities of the military, not hummers and funny gadgets that aren’t militarily.

Mr President, people say that the Inquiry of financial scandal at Dr John Garang Police Training will not yield fruits or be conclusive as expected as there are invisible wicked hands to turn things in favour of Generals at the heart of the scam. Please sir, bring them to account!

Isaiah Abraham lives in Juba