Unpaid salaries drive two NilePet employees on verge of suicide- officials
By Ajah Jennifer
Mounting frustration and prolonged salary delays at Nile Petroleum Corporation reportedly pushed two of the company’s employees to the brink of suicide, raising alarm over the welfare of civil servants in the state-oil behemoth.
Multiple sources within the company, including senior human resource official Joseph Tong Majok and workers’ trade union representative Santino Nyuon Garang, tole The City Review that the employees (both of them men) were recently rescued at the last moment after attempting to take their own lives inside the company premises. In the separate occasions, colleagues intervened just in time. “The situation was very dire,” said Majok. “They were rescued actually at the point of death.”
The employees reportedly attempted suicide due to unpaid salaries and growing financial and psychological pressure. One of the employees who attempted suicide had faced severe personal and legal pressure, including three separate warrants of arrest linked to unpaid debts and obligations he could not meet due to salary delays. Each was later given $2,000 in emergency support to stabilize their condition. Despite the gravity of the situation, employees say they have little hope for change if salaries are not paid soon. “There will be no next course of action,” said one worker resignedly, indicating that most staff feel powerless to challenge.
Many employees have reportedly gone without pay for months, and frustration continues to grow within the workforce. The Managing Director of Nilepet reportedly working remotely for over three months, citing fears for his personal safety and political retaliation. According to Joseph, the MD reportedly expressed that he is being wrongly blamed for the financial delays, stating that salaries are being diverted to meet higher political priorities.
Meanwhile, employees feel abandoned. Santino Nyuon Garang, a representative from the workers’ union and General Services and Administration Officer at Nilepet, called for collective resistance against the systemic failures.
“One person cannot be the reason why this population suffers,” he said. “We sometimes feel the pain of our colleagues who are subjected to difficulties they cannot even try to escape.”
The struggles faced by the NilePet staff reflect a broader need for mental health awareness, fair labor practices, and responsive governance in South Sudan. Without swift intervention, most of the affected fear that more public servants may face similar psychological crises or worse.
In June, NilePet’s Public Relations and Corporate Affairs Department disowned the “NILEPET Workers Trade Union” after it led a a sit-in strike over alleged mismanagement, salary arrears, and staff welfare issues.
The state-owned company described the Union as an illegal and unrecognized entity, accusing it of being politically motivated and intent on derailing ongoing institutional reforms.
“It is important to clarify that this group, styling itself as the ‘NILEPET Workers Trade Union,’ is neither a registered legal entity nor a recognized structure within the Corporation,” the statement said, further accusing its leadership of seeking to discredit and destabilise reforms under the comoany’s Managing Director.
