South Sudan President Sacks Officials After Appointing Man Dead For Five Years To Election Panel

South Sudan’s President, Salva Kiir, has dismissed his Press Secretary, David Amour Major, and the Chief Administrator at the Ministry of Presidential Affairs, Valentino Dhel Maluet, following the appointment of a deceased man to a government committee on elections.

The decision followed a presidential decree issued on January 30, which named Steward Soroba Budia as a member of a panel tasked with leading discussions on the country’s electoral process, according to BBC News Pidgin.

Local media later discovered that Budia had died five years earlier, a revelation that triggered widespread mockery and criticism on social media, with many questioning how such an error could occur at the highest level of government.

In a statement released shortly afterwards, the presidency announced the dismissal of the two officials.

The statement said the Office of the President had relied on the “accuracy and currency” of names submitted by “stakeholders” for inclusion on the panel.