South Sudan’s government has faced public embarrassment after President Salva Kiir appointed a man who died five years ago to serve on an official panel meant to guide discussions ahead of the country’s planned December elections.
The mistake quickly drew criticism and mockery online and has now led to the dismissal of two senior presidential aides.
The
controversy began after a presidential order dated January 30 listed
Steward Soroba Budia as one of the members of a newly formed multi-party
panel.
The group was created to help lead dialogue and preparations related to the upcoming elections.
However,
local media and political observers quickly pointed out a basic but
serious error — Budia, a member of the opposition United Democratic
Party (UDP), passed away about five years ago.
News of the
appointment spread quickly across social media, where many users
questioned how such a major verification failure could happen at the
highest level of government.
Critics said the incident exposed weak administrative checks and poor coordination inside the president’s office.
Soon
after the backlash, an official statement announced that President Kiir
had removed two senior officials from their positions.
Those
dismissed were Press Secretary David Amour Major and Valentino Dhel
Maluet, the chief administrator in the Ministry of Presidential Affairs.
The statement did not directly link their removal to the mistaken
appointment but came immediately after the error became public.
The
announcement, posted on the president’s official Facebook page and
signed by Minister of Presidential Affairs Africano Mande Gedima, said
the president had relieved the two officials of their duties and thanked
them for their service. No detailed explanation was given.
Before his dismissal, Amour had issued a press release defending the process used to create the panel list.
He said the president’s office depended fully on the accuracy of
names submitted by stakeholders involved in the selection process.
According to him, one of those stakeholders failed to properly verify
the information provided.
He described the incident as an administrative oversight caused by poor verification and said it was not intentional.
However,
he did not name the specific stakeholder responsible, and the UDP has
not publicly commented on how the name of their deceased member ended up
on the list.
The panel itself is politically important. It
brings together representatives from different parties and groups and is
supposed to help move the country toward long-delayed elections.
South
Sudan has postponed elections multiple times since gaining independence
in 2011, mainly due to conflict, instability, and incomplete peace
arrangements.
Budia, the deceased politician mistakenly appointed, had previously played a role in national peace efforts.
He
was one of the signatories to the 2018 peace agreement that aimed to
end years of internal conflict following a power struggle among top
leaders after independence.
Despite the formation of the new
election discussion panel, serious doubts remain about whether elections
will actually take place in December.
Several regions continue
to experience insecurity and armed clashes. According to United Nations
reports, large numbers of civilians have been displaced by recent
fighting, especially in Jonglei state.
Tensions also remain high
between President Kiir and his long-time rival Riek Machar, who is
currently suspended from his vice-presidential role and facing serious
criminal charges, which he denies.
Both men were supposed to work
together under a unity government created by the 2018 peace deal, but
their rivalry continues to affect political stability.
The dead-man appointment mistake has now become a symbol of deeper administrative and governance problems.
It shows a basic breakdown in verification and accountability at a critical political moment.
For a country trying to convince citizens and international partners that it is ready for credible elections, this kind of error damages confidence fast.