Federal Affairs Minister, Losuba Ludoru Wongo holds a copy of a Federal Policy document in his office on Friday, 24th Feb 2023. (Photo: Lou Nelson/Eye Radio).

The Minister of Federal Affairs says South Sudan is going to transition into a federal system of governance at the end of the current transitional period.

Losuba Ludoru Wongo said the new government after the general elections shall operate within a federal constitution.

Speaking exclusively to Eye Radio on Friday, Ludoru added that the unity government will use the current structure of governance to transition the country into federalism.

“We are going to build what we have and transition the country smoothly to a fully fresh federal system of government that the people of South Sudan will realize in terms of how different level of government have their powers in terms of administration,” sad Ludoru.

The minister said the federal system will differ in how different areas use their resources and how they also organize politically in order to achieve the really needed services.

“So after the elections, we shall have a new constitution, the operation of the new constitution will be federal so you will see the states will manage themselves in a federal system.”

Last week, the extraordinary council of ministers meeting chaired by President Salva Kiir passed a “Federal Policy” document and the Strategic Plan 2022 – 2025 of the Ministry of Federal Affairs.

The Federal Policy is a guiding tool that has the principal direction of the federal system that South Sudan is expected to adopt during the Constitution making.

The document also highlights the principle of federalism such as the devolution of administrative powers, political organization and arrangement within the federal system, and the physical aspect of federation such as resource distributions at a different level of government.

According to Ludoru, his ministry is planning to hold a National Conference on Federalism that will bring participants from the ten states and administrative areas.

The conference will discuss and give guidance on what to be included in the federal constitution and also address misconceptions surrounding federalism.

However, Ludoru said South Sudan will not adopt what he referred to as ethnic federalization which he believes can divide people.

“You know the issue of creation of states goes with ethnic federalization. We don’t want to ethnicize we don’t want to get into that.”

“We want to define the federal system in such a way that South Sudan will understand that it is a system of government that actually devolve power and if you want the states.”

“There is going to be a mechanism whereby the people can decide. You can create your own states and all that but you have to meet certain criteria, so that is basically the direction.”

Once the federal system of governance is adopted, President Kiir will not have the power to remove any elected constitutional post holder.

Instead, it will be the people to remove whomever they elected.

It will also make it easier for the citizens to hold their leaders accountable because the elected officials will be answerable to the citizens.