Ex-Finance Chief Says He Fought for Oversight of Sudan’s Economy
Ex-Finance Chief Says He Fought for Oversight of Sudan’s Economy
Sudan’s ex-finance minister accused the country’s rulers of failing to grant him the authority necessary to address an economy widely seen as blighted by secrecy and corruption under former dictator Omar al-Bashir.
In his first major public comments since resigning on July 9, Ibrahim El-Badawi took aim at unidentified state-owned companies, institutions and funds he alleged were still free to operate without the oversight of the Finance Ministry. That’s slashed the revenue upon which Sudan can draw, according to the former World Bank official.
The tussle is a stark sign of the challenges facing the civilian part of Sudan’s power-sharing government as it reckons with the remnants of Bashir’s three-decade rule. Although the ex-president was ousted by his army last year, critics point to the major roles still held by many of his former loyalists, especially in a military that owns companies deeply embedded in the economy.
After the North African country agreed the preliminary details of a potential staff-monitored program with the International Monetary Fund in June, El-Badawi said he again urged Prime Minister Abdalla Hamdok to grant him “full authorization” to lead the economy.
After hearing of plans for his replacement, El-Badawi said he decided to quit instead. Six other ministers were also replaced in this month’s re-shuffle.
The former minister’s remarks were conveyed in a five-page statement that was circulated on social media and confirmed as authentic by one of his aides. Hamdok’s office didn’t immediately respond to a request for a comment.
Hamdok is also reckoning with an economic crisis that saw inflation at its highest in two decades and sporadic shortages of fuel and other vital commodities even before the coronavirus pandemic hit. Consumer prices rose 136% in June.
Managing the economy “can’t only be achieved through good governance and structural reformation,” El-Badawi said. “It’s important to delegate some of the important powers to ministers, especially with regards to the economic sector.”
©2020 Bloomberg L.P.