A number of public service employees in Western Bahr-el-Ghazal state reported to Radio Tamazuj on Tuesday that they have been removed from the government payroll and asked to repay wages after standing – they claim - as independent or opposition candidates in the 2010 elections.

Speaking to Radio Tamazuj on Tuesday, Dominic Uchalla, District Director of rural education said he and others lost their jobs as a result of an earlier presidential decree.

“(It was) because a letter came from the president which says that anyone who participated in the 2010 elections should have his/her name removed from the pay sheet,” claimed Uchulla.

Complaining about the dismissal, he asked why the employees were not informed of this at the time.

The public servant went on to explain that beyond his dismissal, he and other former employees have been asked to repay all wages received since 2010, paraphrasing the notification letter:

“He/she should return salaries earned since the 2010 elections up to this year (2013)”.

The official also raised the question of the pensions accrued but did not mention the exact number of employees dismissed.

It is believed that a number of South Sudan’s other states also dismissed some the 2010 election’s candidates from roles in the public service although it is not clear why Western Bahr el-Ghazal state authorities have chosen to wait until now.

The South Sudanese parliament passed the country’s first ‘Pension Act’ in late 2012.