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July 25, 2013 (JUBA) – A number of embarrassing errors have emerged in decrees issued this week by South Sudan’s president, Salva Kiir by which he removed his deputy Riek Machar and relieved the entire government.

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FILE - South Sudan"s President Salva Kiir displays the transitional constitution of the Republic of South Sudan after signing it into law during the Independence Day celebrations in the capital Juba, July 9, 2011 (REUTERS/Thomas Mukoya)

President Kiir on Tuesday issued decree No. 49/2013 sacking Machar while quoting article 104(2) of South Sudan’s 2011 transitional constitution.

Article 104 states that “Any person aggrieved by an act of the president may contest such act before: (a) the Supreme Court, if the alleged act involves a violation of this Constitution, a state constitution, the Bill of Rights, or the decentralized system of government; or (b) any other competent court of law, if the allegation is based on any other legal grounds.

Instead, it is Article 105 (2) that gives the president the power to remove Machar but the wrong article was quoted in the VP decree published on Government of South Sudan (GoSS) website.

Also, the decree No. 50/2013 dissolving the cabinet quoted Article 112 (1) which states that "Deliberations of the National Council of Ministers shall be confidential; no Minister shall disclose, communicate or reveal such deliberations save by permission of the Council of Ministers".

The decree apparently meant to reference 113 (1) which reads "Ministers of the National Government shall be appointed and removed from office by the President".

The Secretary General of the government, Abdoun Agau, also issued a statement on Wednesday citing some mistakes or omissions made in the president’s decree number 14/2013 which restructured the ministries.

He said the ministry of health was left out by mistake while certain departments were attached to wrong ministries.

The president later on in the evening issued another presidential order correcting the mistake, adding up the ministries to 19.

Some observers told Sudan Tribune that the mistakes showed the haste by which Kiir’s decisions were made without proper review or proofreading.

"Not sure who was advising Salva [Kiir]...These are serious errors, at least for the sake of perceptions, even if just a case of numbering...it does not look good to for Salva [Kiir] to have cited as legal basis the wrong numbers for the articles," said one observer who asked not to be named.
(ST)