Japheth Ogila
Africa-Press – South-Sudan. President Salva Kiir issued a decree dismissing Dr Bak Barnaba Chol as the national minister of finance nearly eight months into his stint amid rising economic challenges.
Kiir named Eng. Awow Daniel Chuang—a familiar face with the circles of power—to take over from the Bak. The changes were made in the decree read by the national broadcaster SSBC TV on Friday.
Bak was appointed to steer the docket in August last year after the sacking of Dier Tong Ngor who had previously held the position before being dismissed.
Although no reasons were given for the removal of Ngor at the time, Reuters quoted the government spokesperson, Michael Makuei, hinting that the decision may have been made to fix the value of the South Sudan Pound, which was depreciating at the time.
“You have seen what’s happening in the market—I mean, how the U.S. dollar is appreciating against the South Sudanese pound,” Makuei was quoted as saying by Reuters.
When taking over office, Bak was given an assignment similar to what the president had allocated to his predecessor: reviving the economy and ensuring on-time payment of the salaries of civil servants and organised forces.
“President Kiir assured the new minister of his absolute cooperation as he tackled the economic reforms agenda,” noted the Presidential Press Unit about the discussion during his swearing-in.
The minister then promised to focus on dealing with runaway inflation to improve the cost of living.
However, during his tenure, he was swamped by a myriad of economic challenges, ranging from the delayed payments of salaries to civil servants and organised forces to the continued depreciation of the pound.
His successor, Eng. Chuang, has served in the energy sector for many years. He served as a director-general in the petroleum sector before being appointed the minister of petroleum in 2018. He was then demoted to the position of undersecretary in 2020, when the revitalised government of national unity was formed. He was relieved from the position of undersecretary in early 2022.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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