The Minister of Information of the so-called East Nile State says his government will continue to implement the decision of dismissing civil servants from other states of former Upper Nile State.

This comes in spite of a letter last month from the Minister in the Office of the President Awan Guol Riak who called the ongoing dismissals “divisive,” saying they must be stopped immediately.

East Nile State is one of 28 states created by President Salva Kiir by decree but challenged as unconstitutional by a coalition of opposition parties. Critics say the creation of the new states have aggravated racial tensions and violated the peace agreement.

The state is one of three successor states of Upper Nile State that are divided largely along tribal lines.

Jacob Lam Chan, East Nile Information Minister, told Radio Tamazuj yesterday that the new state has received enough budget for only employees who belong to that state, not for employees hailing from other states. This has led to purges in which some employees have been denied payment in spite of having been long-time employees of the Upper Nile state government.

However, Lam would not discuss the criteria followed by the state to classify and divide citizens as belonging to 'other states'. He asked workers who were denied salaries to check which state they belong to first.

“The National ministry of Finance is the one responsible for releasing the money. Each state receives its budget which is called establishment budget to start establishing its state institutions,” he said.

“We did not understand those who are saying they did not receive their salaries. In which column do they want to receive their salaries. Are they employees of Eastern Nile or Latjor or Western Nile? These are things that we couldn’t understand up to now?” said the minister.

He also said that the state government is not interested in answering any questions relating to the national level, referring to the Establishment Order.

Asked about he criteria by which people are classified as not belonging to East Nile State he responded, “We are in Eastern Nile state did not receive any information about what you are explaining. Up to now I cannot say anything about it because we don’t have any documents to clarify this.”

The minister also denied that his government received any communication about a decision by President Salva Kiir ordering the state governor Chol Thon to reverse his decision regarding the purges of state employees on ethnic basis.

Thousands of Upper Nile civil servants who were dismissed by the decision of the state governor are demanding their salaries and questioning how they have been classified as being citizens of Western Nile or Latjor states.

According to one citizen who spoke to Radio Tamazuj recently in Renk, thousands have been dismissed from their work and prevented from getting their salaries.

File photo: Awan Riak, Minister in the Office of the President

Related:

Governor defies President Kiir’s directive on civil servants (Sudan Tribune, 11 April)

Kiir cancels order terminating employees in East Nile (RT, 16 March)

East Nile governor denies failure to share assets with Latjor and West Nile states (RT, 4 March)

MPs criticize 'divisive' purges in Upper Nile civil service (RT, 1 March)