South Sudan Revenue Authority Headquarters in Juba, South Sudan - COURTESY

Speaking to Eye Radio, the senior customs officer who asked to be identified as Major James Michael Kulang alleges that the SSRA’s highest leadership masterminds the mismanagement of the tax revenue early this year.

Some documents Kulang sent to Eye Radio show three senior SSRA officials have approved the payment of over 130 million South Sudan pounds to four customs staff as medical claims.

The senior officials who authorized the payment are; Dr Patrick Magoya, former commissioner-general of the SSNRA, Major General Gathon Jual Riek, the Acting Commissioner of the Customs Revenue Division, and Dr Daniel Kon Ater, the Acting Commissioner for Corporate Services.

In the document, Dr Magoya approved a request of 53,593,444 SSP for Mustafa Mohammed as a medical claim.

The document dated February 23, 2023, was addressed to the 1st Undersecretary of Finance and Planning.

Another document bearing the names of the four staff of SSRA was addressed to Dr Dier Tong Ngor, the former Minister of Finance and Planning.

The four customs staff are Robert Kiir Deng with 27,200,000 SSP, Mustafa Mohammed with 53,593,440 SSP, Pacid Akiec Ring with 22,067,889 SSP, and Mohammed Ibrahim with 34,113,646 SSP.

In another document addressed to the 1st Undersecretary of Finance and Planning, Gen. Gathon requested the release of 53,593,444 SSP as a medical claim.

Kulang alleges that the top management of SSRA has been selective when it comes to medical assistance.

He stated that most of the customs division officers have been left with no options but to become drunkards, taking cheap alcoholic drinks due to frustrations.

“The corruption that is in the customs division is from the highest leadership, a lot of money has been looted from the office. We don’t know what is going on we the officers working to bring money to the government,” said Kulang.

“We are always losing our colleagues who are sick and a number of them died because they don’t have money. Most of us become drunkards and now they are drinking this small Gin which is locally called “Jena Far” We are already tired of this life,” he said.

“Our situation is miserable and most of the customs staff are tired of such practices. The children of senior officials are the ones being deployed in Nimule to get money to their relatives.”

Kulang calls on President Salva Kiir to intervene and rescue the division from the graft.

“My special appeal to the president of the republic, Salva Kiir Mayardit, is to stop those people by sending them to prison. Bring the right person in the right place, not those who are there.”

In his response, Major General Gathon Jual Riek, the Acting Commissioner of the Customs Revenue Division, described the allegation as baseless.

“I have no interest in responding to anything because it’s baseless. If I respond, he [Kulang] will think that I have done whatever he is talking about, something I don’t want to respond to,” said Gathon.

When Eye Radio contacted the Acting Commissioner for Corporate Services, Dr Daniel Kon Ater, his phone went unanswered.

In 2020, some officers working at various border points in South Sudan called for the resignation of the former Director-General of Custom Services over corruption allegations.

About 36 customs service officers had accused the former Director-General of mismanagement and embezzlement of non-oil revenues.

Their complaints were similar to the finding in 2023 of an Economic Cluster subcommittee that said taxes were being diverted into individual accounts some years ago.

In July 2020, President Salva Kiir also mentioned in his Independence Day speech that non-oil revenues are not being fully remitted into the single block account of the National Revenue Authority.

He stated that when collected and well managed, the non-oil revenues should be able to meet the government’s expenditure.

The non-oil revenues are by law wired into the account of the National Revenue Authority.

However, in 2020, a report by an Anti-Corruption Resource Center identified the main types of corruption in South Sudan as bureaucratic corruption, patronage, political corruption, and embezzlement.