A member of the Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) on Wednesday urged the Ministry of Finance to suspend the allocation of the oil revenues to infrastructure projects and channel the funds to the civil servants’ salaries and wages.
Changkuoth Bichiock Reth, who is the Chairperson of Committee for Finance and Economic Planning, urged the government to revisit their priorities.
“Suspend the resolution of the Council of Ministers which allocates the Nile Blend Oil in Block 1,2,4 and 5A for infrastructure development projects and redirect it to clear the wages and salaries for the entire government,” Reth said.
He advised the government to suspend spending on the oil-for-road projects until a better solution is found to reallocate the Nile Blend Crude Oil to the infrastructure development.
The salary arrears for the civil servants and the members of the organized forces stand at SSP 85 billion per month, he said.
Reth said the Revenue Authority collects SSP 40 billion per month from the non-oil sector, an amount, he pointed out, was half the wages and salaries of the civil servants.
He said that currently, the Nile Blend Crude Oil in Unity State contributed US$44 to US$47 billion to the national coffers monthly.
In May 2018, South Sudan allocated 20,000 barrels of its crude oil per day to Chinese firms to build roads.