.
Composition and Competences of the National Council of Ministers
70 (1) The President of the Republic shall, after consultation within the Presidency, appoint the National Council of Ministers.
(2) The President of the Republic and the two Vice Presidents shall be members of the National Council of Ministers.
(3) Without prejudice to the powers vested in the President of the Republic and the Presidency under this Constitution, decisions of the Council of Ministers shall prevail over all other executive decisions.
(4) The National Council of Ministers shall be the national executive authority in the State in accordance with the provisions of this Constitution and the law; its decisions shall be adopted by consensus or by simple majority.
(5) There shall be national State ministers appointed by the President of the Republic, after consultation within the Presidency; they shall assist the national ministers and may act in their absence.
(6) The national State ministers shall take the same oath of office of the national minister.
Oath of the National Minister
71 The national minister shall, upon his/her appointment, assume the functions of his/her office by taking the following oath before the President of the Republic:-
I
..
having been appointed a national minister, do hereby swear by Almighty God that I will at all times be faithful to the Republic of the Sudan; that I will obey, respect, and uphold the Constitution and abide by all laws of the country, loyally defend its independence, promote its unity and the democratic decentralized system of government established by the Constitution, and to faithfully serve the people and the country to the best of my ability; and God is my witness.
Functions of the National Council of Ministers
72 The National Council of Ministers shall have the following functions:-
(a) planning State policy,
(b) implementation of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement,
(c) initiation of national legislative bills, national budget, international treaties, bilateral and multilateral agreements,
(d) receiving reports about national ministerial performance for review and action,
(e) receiving reports on executive performance of states for purposes of information and coordination, provided that in case of the states of Southern Sudan, reports shall be received through the Government of Southern Sudan,
(f) receiving reports on matters that are concurrent or residual and decides whether it is competent to exercise such power in accordance with Schedules E and F herein. If it so decides, it shall notify the other levels of government of its intention to exercise such power. In case any other level of government objects thereto, a committee shall be set up by the levels concerned to amicably resolve the matter before resorting to the Constitutional Court,
(g) any other functions assigned thereto by the President of the Republic and the law.
Functions of the National Minister
73 (1) The national minister shall be the head of his/her ministry, and his/her decisions shall prevail therein. However, the National Council of Ministers may review such decisions; the President of the Republic may suspend the decision of a national minister pending such review.
(2) The national minister and corresponding ministers of Government of Southern Sudan and states shall collaborate and establish relations among themselves in fulfilling their respective constitutional obligations.
(3) Perform any public or political role and provide leadership in public affairs to achieve the objectives of national policy.
(4) Any other functions or powers assigned by law or delegation.
Collective and Individual Responsibility of National Ministers
74 (1) The national minister shall be answerable to the President of the Republic, the National Council of Ministers and the National Assembly.
(2) The national ministers shall be collectively and individually responsible before the National Assembly for the performance of the National Council of Ministers.
(3) The national minister shall be bound by the decisions of the National Council of Ministers.
Declaration of Wealth and Prohibition of Private Business
75 (1) All executive and legislative constitutional office holders, Justices, and senior civil service officials shall, upon assumption of their offices, make confidential declarations of their assets and liabilities including those of their spouses and children in accordance with the law.
(2) The President of the Republic, the two Vice Presidents, assistants and advisors, the President of Government of Southern Sudan, national ministers, and other constitutional office holders shall, during their tenure of offices, neither practice any private profession, transact commercial business, nor receive compensation or accept employment of any kind from any source other than the National Government, the Government of Southern Sudan or a state government as the case may be.
Vacancy of the Office of the National Minister
76 The office of the national minister shall fall vacant in any of the following cases:-
(a) acceptance of resignation by the President of the Republic,
(b) relief from office by the President of the Republic after consultation within the Presidency,
(c) death.
Confidentiality of Deliberations of the National Council of Ministers
77 Deliberations of the National Council of Ministers shall be confidential; no minister shall disclose, communicate or reveal such deliberations save by permission of the Council of Ministers.
Contesting Ministerial Acts
78 Any person aggrieved by an act of the National Council of Ministers or a national minister may contest such act:
(a) before the Constitutional Court, if the alleged act involves a violation of this Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the decentralized system of government, or the Comprehensive Peace Agreement,
(b) before the competent authority or court of law if the allegation is based on other legal grounds. |
