On Monday, the Reconstituted Transitional National Legislative Assembly (R-TGoNU) announced the shortlisted persons for the positions of chairpersons and deputy chairpersons of the specialised committees.

In the list, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Government (SPLM-IG) was allocated 20 positions for chairpersons and 14 for deputy chairpersons. Meanwhile, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement in Opposition (SPLM-IO) got nine chairperson positions and seven deputies.

The formation of the standing specialised committees marked the complete reconstitution of the parliament, despite the fact some parties did not submit the list of their nominees for the positions. The presence of the specialised committees is very important for the smooth and proper functioning of the parliament; no August house can do without them. 

The standing specialised committees have a lot of work currently, among them the several bills that have been passed by the council of ministers that need to be discussed in the parliament. The budget also needs to be scrutinised by the committee before it is deliberated upon by the parliament.

The formation of the specialised committees is very essential, though it has come later than expected. It is the work of the committees to hold the executive and other constitutional post holders accountable for the issues affecting the citizens.

It is now time for the parliament to start serious business because a lot of time has been wasted in discussing the responsibility sharing ratios and the nominations of the members of the parliament.

Although this time will not be recovered, it is significant to make good use of the remaining time.  The parties are looking forward to holding the election after the transitional period, but this seems impossible without the permanent constitution, as required by the revitalised peace agreement. So, there is a need to work on the permanent constitution to give full freedom to the citizens to elect their leaders without fear or intimidation.

Apart from working on the provisions of the revitalised peace agreement, there are several other issues affecting the citizens, such as insecurity, cattle issues in the farming communities, land grabbing, child abuse and abduction, that need to be addressed. All these require the hard work of the specialised committees.

Land ownership has become a serious issue because the current constitution does not clearly define the land tenure system in the country.  

 The South Sudan transitional constitution only says the land is owned by the community but does not explain who can use the land; for how long and under what conditions.

So, land acquisition has become a very contentious issue in the country due to laws guiding it. The land bill that was sent to the defunct TNLA in 2015 for amendment has not come out till now. The uncertainty in the land laws has fuelled land grabbing in the country, especially in Juba.

The standing specialised committee for land and physical infrastructure, and environment and forestry, has to work hard to address the corruption in the landowners.