Hon. Carolina Achok Akot, State Minister of Roads and Bridges, who has denied the corruption allegations against her. (Courtesy)

Governor of Northern Bahr el Ghazal indefinitely suspends State Minister of Roads and Bridges, Carolina Achok Akot, over allegations of corruption and gross indiscipline. The minister has since described the accusations as “baseless and false.”

Governor Simon Ober Mawut issued the suspension order on August 25, 2025, relieving Achok Akot of her duties.

According to the governor, the minister was suspended for repeated absenteeism from her official duties, failure to attend meetings of the Council of Ministers, and refusal to participate in the recently held Commissioners’ Forum.

Governor Ober also accused Achok of seizing UNOPS equipment and materials handed over to the state following the completion of the Nyamlel Bridge in December 2024, and using them for personal purposes.

Further allegations include the misappropriation of 60 million South Sudanese Pounds, reportedly collected from leasing government land for the construction of a petrol station in the Sika Adit area.

The governor also claims that Achok sold hundreds of liters of fuel donated by UNMISS for the rehabilitation of the Aweil Airport runway.

In the interim, the Governor has appointed the Minister of General Education and Instruction to serve as the Acting Minister of Roads and Bridges until further notice.

In her response, submitted as a formal petition to the governor, Carolina Achok Akot denied all accusations, calling them “baseless and false.“

She stated that her differences with the governor are not political or administrative, but rather a personal dispute.