President Salva Kiir has dismissed the head of the government-owned Nile Petroleum Company on Monday amid an acute fuel crisis in Juba which has persisted for nearly a month.
In his decree, Kiir did not explain whether he removed Director-General Joseph Cleto Deng for failing to manage the fuel crisis or for another reason.
The move was welcomed by some who are upset over the fuel crisis. “I am not surprised by the dismissal of the director-general of Nile Petroleum as much as I am puzzled by the silence about why we have been lacking fuel,” said one Juba resident.
Also on Monday, the government announced the arrival of fuel tankers to Juba and most petrol stations were seen crowded with vehicles and motorbikes queuing.
Cleto was replaced by Machar Achiek, former undersecretary in the Ministry of Petroleum.
The outgoing director-general was appointed only in May. He had served as Kiir’s office manager in the SPLM and was a native of his home state. Soon after taking office, Cleto was cited in a press report for secretly giving away tens of thousands of dollars to friends and political allies. This was never denied by the government, but instead explained as a kind of charitable work.
According to leaked documents, the beneficiaries included Salva Kiir’s cousin Thiik Thiik Mayardit who was given $12,000, and Marko Monydeng Akook, a chief from Kiir’s home area of Akon North Payam, who was given $10,000.
In August, the government quietly suspended “assistance payments” by Cleto’s office.
Other members of the board of Nilepet include Salva Kiir’s business partner Benjamin Bol Mel and National Security head Akol Kur Kuch.
UPDATE: Presidential Press Secretary Ateny Wek told Radio Miraya today: “The dismissal was extraordiary, given the extraordinary situation in which Joseph Cleto Deng has found himself. There was crisis that, well, behind the dismissal. And so the president made a decision to bring new administration and brought someone who is more experienced and someone who has more connections.”