Day: January 22, 2023

The council of ministers has approved nearly USD 4.5 Million to appeal a case brought against the Government of South Sudan by the Al Fattouch Group which operated the telecoms firm Vivacell which was suspended by the government in March 2018.

South Sudan suspended the license of mobile network operator Vivacell after accusing it of failing to follow regulations, Ladu Wani Kenyi, the then director general of the National Communications Authority said at the time.

However, the Al Fattouch Group countered that their operating license waived all taxes and dragged the Government of South Sudan to the International Court of Arbitration and demanded USD 3.5 Billion in restitution but was awarded USD 1 Billion by the court.

According to Makuei, the cabinet approved the USD 4,482,500 as court fees and money to hire national and international law firms to defend the government. He said the government decided to suspend Vivacell after its license which was obtained from the New Sudan, a government that was in the vision of the Sudan People`s Liberation Movement/Army, had expired and they wanted the telecom to register in South Sudan.

“Vivacell was operating on the license of the New Sudan, which is is a country which SPLM/SPLA was fighting for, it was a license which was issued by the Civil Authority of the New Sudan,” he explained. “When that license was issued, it was bought by Vivacell/ Al Fattouch Group and they were exempted from payment of all the fees and whatever for 10 years from the date of operation. When the 10 years ended, this was the time I called the Fattouch Group and told them to now obtain the license of South Sudan, they refused and insisted that we should allow them to continue to operate on this New Sudan license.”

Minster Makuei said the stand of the Vivacell administrators was not agreeable to the Government of South Sudan.

“The New Sudan license to us as independent South Sudan is a foreign license so we did not give them that opportunity,” he said. “They insisted and I suspended their operation to bring them to the table so that we can talk and they refused and went and complained in the International Court of Arbitration.”

He revealed that Vivacell demanded USD 3 Billion in compensation but the court awarded them USD 1 Billion.

“We went there and have been following the case all these years until last year when the court awarded them USD m1 Billion and Vivacell was claiming a sum of USD 3 Billion from us,” he said. “We disputed the USD 3 billion and we even questioned the competence of the arbitrator to look into that case because we are an entity, we are a country with its laws so our law should apply in this particular case.”

“The arbitrator did not listen to us and decided to knock out the USD 2 Billion leaving USD 1 Billion and we are now appealing against the decision of the arbitrator in a Swiss court which is the center for arbitration,” he added.

Makuei stressed that they are appealing the ruling of the court on the basis that the arbitrator is incompetent.

“We are appealing because the arbitrator himself does not have the competence,” he said. “Number two, the amount which is being claimed by these people (Vivacell) is not in place and number three, we did not dismiss or finally stop Vivacell but we suspended its operation. There is a difference between suspension or dismissal or putting aside or closure.”

Source: Radio Tamazuj

The Malakia County Court in Juba has set 22 February 2023 as the date it will deliver a verdict in the case of the Pieri plane crash.

Court hearings have been ongoing for over a year in a case brought against South Supreme Airlines by the families of the victims of an airplane crash that involved one of the airline’s planes.

The aircraft, a Let L-410 with registration number HK-4274, crashed shortly after takeoff from the airstrip in Pieri town of Uror County, Jonglei state, killing all 10 people on board, including two crew members, in March 2021.

The plaintiff’s lawyer, Kuol Nyok, told Radio Tamazuj Friday that the court set a day for the final ruling after final submissions were made on Friday.

“During Friday’s session, we made our final submissions. And the file on this case has now been closed for the judges to go through the evidence pending a final verdict on 22 February as set by the court,” he said.

Meanwhile, Makuei Puok Bai, a representative of the victims’ families, said the court’s decision is overdue.

“The final verdict in our case is now set for 22 February,” he said. “Our lawyer presented all the evidence and our demands to the court so we are ready and happy that the case is now being finalized.”

The airline’s defense lawyer, Wednesday Joseph, declined to comment.

Source: Radio Tamazuj

The National Constitutional Amendment Committee (NCAC) has distanced itself from claims by the Revitalized Transitional National Legislative Assembly’s (R-TNLA) information committee chairperson that faulted the body for the delay in the reopening of the house.

Last week, the chairperson of parliament’s information committee, John Agany, said the August House had to extend its recess due to the NCAC’s delay in submitting and or tabling outstanding Bills.

Gichira Kibara, the NCAC chairperson, however, told Radio Tamazuj Thursday that they submitted several Bills that are yet to be passed by either the cabinet or the legislature.

“I saw some report in the media that was suggesting that the NCAC has slowed down their work and that is why the Transitional National Legislative Assembly has not resumed their work that is not correct,” he explained. “We have done a lot of Bills that have not been passed that are still pending before either the council of ministers or the legislature.”

Kibara said they are on top of their work and denied slowing down parliament’s work.

“We believe we are on time and have not slowed down anybody in terms of making the laws because we have already for instance presented Bills for the Audit Act which has not been passed,” he said.

“We have also presented the Elections, Petroleum and Public Finance Management Bills and Anti-corruption Act which have not been passed. So, there are very many laws that are pending between the legislature and the council of ministers.”

Kibara called on the government to expedite the process of passing the Bills so that the laws are operationalized.

“Otherwise, on the side of the NCAC, we have tried very much that all the laws that are needed are done in time so that the legal foundation is laid for the reforms of both governance and finance and economic affairs of the republic of South Sudan,” he said.

Kibara revealed that they are now working on the Bank of South Sudan Act and the Banking Act to reform the two laws and that they will be presented to the Ministry of justice in a week.

Other bills he said they are working on are the NGO Act and the Investment Act among others.

Source: Radio Tamazuj

At least 17 inmates charged with different crimes were released from Juba Central Prison in Central Equatoria State on Friday after a group of pro bono lawyers and legal aid organizations paid their fines.

Addressing the media after the release of the inmates, the director of administration at the prison, Edward Anyak Deng, said the decision to release the inmates was arrived at after a group of lawyers from the Legal Aid and Human Rights Organization in collaboration with Human Appeal Associates (a law firm), came to their rescue.

“I want to thank the legal aid organization for its wonderful role and decision to help because if a group of lawyers can mobilize themselves and come to the prison to do something like this, it is great,” he said. We as the prison administration thank them so much for releasing the 17 people some of who had completed their sentences but were still in prison because they have not paid their fines.”

Deng said that the release of the 17 inmates has helped decongest the prison.

On his part, Leek John Alier, the executive director of the Legal Aid and Human Rights Organization, said they decided to help release the inmates because most of them could not afford to pay the fines determined by court.

He said three organizations pooled USD 2,000 to have the convicts released.

“We have so many plans but this is the first step. In the next two weeks, we may release 50 more prisoners,” he disclosed.

When asked why only males were released, Alier said they requested for both male and female inmates but that the prison authorities did not avail the names of any females.

Meanwhile, Kitab Agustino who represented Human Appeal Associates, said the released inmates will undergo rehabilitation before being integrated into the community.

“We are going to be responsible for the inmates who have been released and rehabilitate them before they rejoin society,” he said.

Bonny Okwona, the representative of the released inmates who was serving a 6 months jail term for drunkenness, said he had reformed.

“I was charged for excessive drinking under article 13 of the Penal Code. Prison has taught me about the dangerous effects of alcohol,” he said. “When I would be drunk, I went home tired both physically and mentally. In the last 6 months, I came to realize that there were a lot of things missing in my life.”

Source: Radio Tamazuj