Fourteen political parties reject $50,000 registration fee

JUBA – At least 14 South Sudanese political organizations have submitted a petition rejecting a $50,000 provisional registration license fee imposed by the Political Parties Council (PPC).

The parties make up two coalitions: the South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA) and the Coalition of Opposition Parties (COOP).

They allege the high fees are a deliberate attack on democracy designed to silence opposition voices ahead of upcoming elections.

The Political Parties’ Council had initiated a $50,000 fee for a provisional license and an additional $25,000 for full registration, bringing the total to $75,000.

Dr. Chol Gai Paul, chairman of the People’s United Front and COOP member, expressed the group’s strong objection to the fees, emphasizing their lack of legal basis.

“We, the leaders of political parties seeking to register with the Political Parties Council (PPC) in South Sudan, are writing to express our strong rejection of the recent fee increase for provisional registration,” he told journalists during a press conference in Juba on Monday.

“We are deeply concerned about the sudden and significant rise from SSP 20,000 to USD 50,000 for a provisional license imposed by the current leadership of the PPC,” he added.

The parties argue that the fee contradicts the principles of democracy and fair political participation and point to Articles 7(7) and 8(3) of the Political Parties Act 2012 (amended 2022) to support their claims.

They also cite a presidential declaration that all transactions within the country should be in South Sudanese Pounds (SSP), making the dollar-based fee unlawful.

The parties compared South Sudan’s fee with Kenya’s registration process, where parties pay significantly less, and assert that exorbitant fees hinder citizens from exercising their right to participate in elections.

“We are calling on the PPC to reconsider this decision and revert the fee to its original amount of SSP 20,000. This was the official registration fee before the appointment of the new leadership,” the parties stated.

Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin, chairman of the National Democratic Movement (NDM) and member of SSOA, claimed the PPC is not serious about the registration process, citing the absence of regulations and necessary forms.

“When the Council announced on 23 January that they were ready for parties to register, it was very clear that they were not ready because there are no regulations and there are no forms for people to fill,” said Akol.

“The law says you must collect 500 signatures from each state to get registered and there are specific forms to be used in collecting those signatures. So how will I collect signatures without forms?” he inquired.

Advocate Gabriel Kuot Akok, president of the People’s Progressive Party, expressed concern that the fees will negatively impact parties seeking to participate in elections, alleging a deliberate effort to delay the registration process and hinder participation.

“We are left with nine months now to go for elections and the PPC intends to delay the process. By now we are supposed to have completed the process of provisional license because in law, if you apply according to the Political Parties Act 2012, as amended, you can be given your provisional license within 30 days,” he stated.

“We applied in January and up to now people are struggling with issues to do with fees. If there were no complications while the Council’s chairperson, James Akol, is absent, we would have taken our provisional license and then we go for registration within six months and get ready to go for elections,” he added.

According to Kuot, there is a deliberate plan to choke upcoming political parties so that they do not participate in elections.

He accused PPC leadership of not showing up in the office, questioning, “So, how do you expect me to get my license when there is no responsible person in the institution?”