Ex-Nilepet managing director Chol Deng welcomes sacking

JUBA, JANUARY 22ND 2023 (SUDANS POST) – The former managing director of Nilepet Dr. Chol Deng Thon has issued a statement welcoming his relieve from the position and thanking President Salva Kiir Mayardit for appointing him to the position twice.

Chol was first appointed as the managing director of the state oil firm in 2017 to replace James Thelweng Mathiang Rok who had served barely seven months in the position.

In 2020, Kiir dismissed him and was replaced by Bol Ring Mourwel who would be replaced by Chol in his appointment to the position for the second time in October 2021.

In a presidential decree on January 13, Kiir sacked Chol and replaced him with Bernard Amuor Makeny.

The decree read out on the state-own South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation (SSBC) did not cite any reason behind the sacking of the longest-serving Nilepet boss.

In a statement seen by Sudans Post, Chol welcomed the sacking and thanked the president for giving him the trust to serve in one of the most lucrative jobs in the world’s youngest country and went on to highlight “achievements” during his tenures.

“I would like to seize this opportunity to thank H.E. Gen. Salva Kiir Mayardit, President of the Republic of South Sudan for the trust he bestowed upon me and his support during my two tenures as the Managing Director (MD) of Nile Petroleum Corporation (NILEPET),” Chol wrote.

“As an insider who served in various managerial positions within NILEPET for about a decade, my two tenures (of 4 years and 4 months) as MD recognized both enabling and constraining aspects of our national oil giant. The institution pursued some projects which are vital for corporate growth,” he cited.

While further thanking Kiir for the chances to serve as the Nilepet chief, Chol congratulated his successor, describing him as someone who “brings with him a wealth of experience from joint operating companies (JOCs) and an impeccable institutional memory relevant to his new role in the oil sector.”

“Change of assignment for all public post holders is not only inevitable, but imminently desirable for the success of public institutions,” he said.

Nilepet is the public company managed by the government with a mandate to oversee oil exploration, production and marketing in South Sudan.

It was incorporated in 2009 just two years before the country’s independence from Sudan.

Oil is the main source of revenue for the world’s youngest country.