Members of the transitional national legislature during a sitting in Juba. | Photo: Courtesy.

National members of parliament have received 15,000 dollars each as the balance of their medical allowances for the 2021/2022 financial year.

According to some MPs whose names Eye Radio withheld, the lawmakers from both the national legislative assembly and the council of states received the amount on Friday last week, August 18.

Each MP was supposed to get 50,000 dollars of the yearly medical allowance, but the expansion of the parliament caused the reduction to just about 30,000 dollars per year.

In October last year, the MPs received a partial payment of 15,000 dollars each, which they say was made according to the law.

The support staff in the parliament also received 2,500 dollars each, similar to that of October last year.

The medical allowance came a week after the MPs passed more than 2 trillion South Sudanese pounds budget for the year 2023/2024.

Previously, opposition politicians and human rights bodies criticized the legislators over such payment while the majority of citizens are suffering in the country.

When asked about the medical allowances, the spokesperson of parliament, John Agany declined to comment on the matter, referring it to the administration of the august house.

Agany told Eye Radio journalist during a press conference at the Parliament on Tuesday, August 22, that the lawmakers are entitled to gratuities.

“Receiving salaries and receiving any other gratuities to the honourable members is just like any employed person that receives anything. It is something individual,” said Agany.

“If you want to know go to the administration, I’m a politician dealing with the national problem, not with individual cases of receiving dues,” he said.

“This is something small, something very substantive, and you can discuss it with the administration if you want, and I have nothing to do with it.”

“I’m saying I’m receiving a salary, I’m receiving any other gratuities, the public knows that I have always been employed and I’m paid.”

There are a total of 650 members of the legislature, who represent parties to the revitalized peace agreement.