A number of motorists in Juba have raised concerns over the validity period for drivers’ license

By Chuol Chanyong

Some taxi and truck drivers in Juba have raised concerns about the new driving license directive issued by the Directorate of traffic police on Saturday.

Henry Justin, a taxi driver said: “I want to know why the government wants to issue this law now. We drivers are tired because sometimes you can renew your license, and perhaps you will not get a car during this period and the license will expire before you benefit from it.”

Meanwhile, Isaac, a Ugandan truck driver said the six-month expiry date set by the government is too short.

“We cannot afford it. It is better to renew it once a year as usual because work these days is not good, and we rarely make profit.”

Another driver, Youssef Tariq said, “This will affect us here. Sometimes we stay for two weeks without work.”

“We are suffering from debts here and there are a lot of trucks. It is a big problem. Now I will pay $200 a year to renew my driving license. We will leave the job and this new law will affect you the nationals,” Tariq said.

Meanwhile, John Patrick said the new decision to renew the driving license every six months will cause a lot of congestion at the traffic police office.

“So that people will spend their time in the traffic offices without working.”

 He urged the government to reduce the fees if they want to renew their license every six months.

In a separate context, Edmund Yakani and Godfrey Victor have criticized the directive to amend the validity period of driving licenses, describing it as a violation of the law and constitutional provisions. 

The activists said this will cause conflicts with the regulations contained in the fiscal year 2024/2025, and the draft appropriations bill of the National Parliament.

“We have some concerns that we want to draw the attention of the country’s leadership at the executive and legislative levels, and one of the serious concerns is the new directives for driver’s licenses.”   

“We appeal to the Traffic Police Directorate to explain to us, because this seems to conflict with the controls of the draft law for the fiscal year 2024-2025,”  Yakani stated.

 “I also appeal to the House of Representatives to investigate these new directives, regarding driving licenses for citizens and foreigners, as we seek to clarify this confusion in the public domain.”

For his part, Godfrey Victor, Executive Director of the Justice and Human Rights Observatory, said this directive is a clear violation of the law and the transitional constitution of South Sudan.

Victor said the Traffic Director has no authority to enact or amend any law, adding that he must adhere to the provisions of the constitution and uphold the rule of law, to preserve the institutional integrity and public trust.

 “In a real sense, the traffic director does not have the authority to enact any law, and this is consistent with the provisions of our constitution, which gave the authority to draft the law, amend it, and issue it to Parliament.”

On Saturday, the Director of Traffic Police, Major General Kon John Akot, issued an order reducing the validity period of the driver’s license, from five years to one year for citizens of South Sudan, and six months for foreigners, which sparked widespread criticism across the country.

The directive dated January 4, 2025, stated that all license application files must be submitted to the National Traffic Police Directorate for final approval before renewing them.

 “With regard to the above-mentioned issue, the duration of the driving license for citizens (South Sudan) has been reduced from five years to one year, and for foreigners from one year to six months,” the letter stated.

It is noteworthy that in a previous statement, Major General Con John Akot justified his position by saying, “The issue of a five-year driving license does not exist in the law, and the license must be annual and the insurance must be renewed for a full year.” 

The draft Traffic and Safety Law of 2012, as amended, stipulates that “any driving license issued in South Sudan must be on the specified form and be valid for 5 years.

“With regard to the above-mentioned issue, the duration of the driving license for citizens (South Sudan) has been reduced from five years to one year, and for foreigners from one year to six months,” read a statement from the Director of Traffic Police.