South Sudan gained her independence from Sudan on 9 July 2011 with common values applicable to all citizens. The foundational values of South Sudan as a sovereign state are justice, equality, respect for human dignity and advancement of human rights and fundamental freedoms. The South Sudanese Government authorities have the duty to exercise their governmental powers through its democratic and representative institutions established by the Constitution. 

 The Constitution is the social contract whose terms are found in the Bill of Rights and in the preamble. This is because the Bill of Rights is a covenant among South Sudanese and between them and the Government of South Sudan at every level. The Government institutions at all levels headed by the President made the solemn commitment to respect and promote the Bill of Rights with all human rights and fundamental freedoms, which are components of the Bill of Rights. 

The Government has the duty to observe the Bill of Rights, which is the cornerstone of social justice, equality and democracy (Article 9 (1) of the Transitional Constitution). The Bill of Rights imposes primary responsibilities on the National Government of South Sudan as provided for under Article 53 (1). The Primary Responsibilities of the Republic of South Sudan are: 

(a)   maintenance of peace and security;

(b)   reconstruction and development;

(c)    promotion of good governance and welfare of the people;

(d)  exercising authority in respect of South Sudan and the states; and

(e)    ensuring the protection of the rights and interests of the people.

The above primary responsibilities give South Sudan an absolute duty to protect its citizens both internally and externally. They join the National Government in implementing the provisions of the Constitution and other laws it has enacted in letter and spirit. The primary responsibilities of the Government of South Sudan are to act in accordance with the Constitution and its own laws.  

The Government is given primary responsibility to protect citizens since it has administrative power and monopoly over the use of force that can be used effectively to control the state and its internal affairs, including the manner of its activities in the process of delivering services to the public.  This is why all governments, whether students or the real Government, are structured in a way that can allow checks and balances to make them accountable to the people they serve. 

The true Government is the accountable Government to her people. A government that does not account for its people turns out to be a conspiratorial organization whose internal affairs are run on primitive forces of demand and supply. An unaccountable Government is an organization that is governed by the principles of survival of the fittest. 

Under unaccountable Government, the forces of repression, all forms of injustice, political sectarianism, regionalism, tribalism, ethnic chauvinism, marginalization and exploitation, religious bigotry, intolerance, harmful customs and gender discrimination against women and girls and children exist. 

The reason we have the Constitution is to make sure that accountability exists as the Constitution is the Government and the Government is the Constitution. Hence, we talk of the constitutional Government. The Constitution in this context should not be understood to mean the written text but the belief in certain national supreme values that are unconditionally respected by the authorities.

The Government where the law is supreme is the constitutional Government. This is the Government under which the people have the right to elect the leaders to form a government, hold the Government accountable, and participate in the decision-making process. Under the constitutional Government, those who govern are regularly accountable to at least a portion of the governed. 

The Constitution government is a constitutional democracy. Under constitutional democracy, accountability is owed to the electorate by all persons in Government. This is called government accountability. The accountability of the Government is a form of liability, which is understood as the obligation of the holder of those who are trusted with public offices to provide accountability.

Accountability basically plays a very important role in creating good governance activity and improving public confidence in government performance. The concept of accountability can be seen in that government officials are accountable not only to higher authorities in the institutional chain of command but also to the general public, non-governmental organizations, mass media, and many other stakeholders. 

The Government means accountability, not big houses or good cars. It is through accountability that the Government delivers quality services to the public. The accountability is imposed on the Government in two ways, namely: (1) vertical accountability. and (2) horizontal accountability. Vertical accountability is accountability for the management of funds to higher authorities, such as accountability of work units to local governments, regional accountability to the central Government, etc. On the other hand, horizontal accountability is the responsibility that is conveyed to the general community.

It is in relation to the above understanding of accountability that we talk about having an accountable government. This is a government that is answerable or required to justify its actions or decisions. Accountability is not created through elections per se, but it is the value that leaders must obey whether they are elected or not by virtue of being in leadership positions. The elections only give the citizens power to enforce the duty of the leaders to account.  

An accountable government is the Government where the authorities operate according to the Law. It is the Government under which the separation of powers is respected, and the executive branch does not have the power to mortgage the country's oil for several years without the approval of the parliament. It is the Government that pays the workforce living in a certain way on a monthly basis. The accountable Government implements political and economic reforms to improve transparency and public financial management and addresses pervasive, endemic corruption and human rights violations. 

The accountable Government does not allow businesses where individuals engage in illicit finance activities.  It is the Government where government officials avoid conflict of interest by not allowing their families to run businesses or investments that are associated with the Government. The accountable Government is the Government that does not allow its interest to hold hostage the country through the political calculations of the country’s military and security elites, who use a combination of violence, misappropriated public resources and patronage to pursue their own narrow interests.

The accountable Government is the Government that cares about being labelled as the world’s worst public sector corruption. It is the Government that ensures that there is progress on public financial management reform under which the extension of the transitional period does not increase the perception and opportunity for corrupt deals.  It is the Government that does not allow an opportunity for corruption in government tenders for oil cargo.  

The accountable Government is the Government that fights and controls extensive economic crimes, including the misuse of oil revenue, off-book investments by the intelligence service and military, kick-back contracts for currency printing, and misuse of non-oil revenue by the National Revenue Authority and Customs. 

The accountable Government is the Government that is transparent in the management of oil revenues and loans. It is the Government that does not use oil cargo as collateral in business, which gives room to significant revenue leakage and diversion by corrupt actors that undermine the financing of basic services for the people.

 The accountable Government is the Government that manages oil under the highly regulated system of oil revenue collection supervised by independent oversight and transparent bodies that can minimize opportunities for the misappropriation of public funds. It is the Government that does not allow significant amounts of accrued oil revenues to be stolen by political elites.

In conclusion, the accountable Government is the true Government. It is the Government that ensures that it implements its budgetary priorities as stipulated in the national budget. It is the Government that avoids practices of requiring advance payment or loans for oil cargos contracted through government tenders that decrease the Government’s revenue to meet existing budgetary obligations due to steep discounts offered on these sales, and the interest charged on the loans are controlled.  

The accountable Government is where citizens are empowered through clear devolution of powers under the supremacy of the rule of law and respect for the separation of powers and roles to ensure unity of the people, shared historical experiences and respect for diversity. The accountable Government is the Government under which human Rights and fundamental freedoms are respected, protected, promoted and fulfilled.  It is the Government under which the respect of democratic institutions and collective leadership is ensured. It is where accountability, transparency and good governance exist. 

Hon. Juol Nhomngek Daniel, a member of the SPLM-IO in the National Parliament (TNLA) representing Cueibet County in Lakes State, is a lawyer specializing in good governance, constitutional and customary law, and human rights. He can be reached at nhomngekjuol@gmail.com.

The views expressed in ‘opinion’ articles published by Radio Tamazuj are solely those of the writer. The veracity of any claims made is the responsibility of the author, not Radio Tamazuj.