South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Jenifer James
The legal dispute between former employees of UAP Insurance and the company took a new turn during a court session held yesterday, as the defence lawyer raised concerns about inconsistencies in loan agreements and questioned the role of the Ministry of Labour in the ongoing case.
Speaking to the Dawn newspaper after the session on Monday, defence lawyer Marko Reech, representing the dismissed staff, said that the hearing was initially scheduled to allow a UAP company witness to clarify the terms of a controversial loan agreement between the company and its former employees. However, a new claim emerged regarding changes in the contract’s currency.
“Originally, the contract was signed in pounds, but today the company introduced a version in US dollars,” Reech told reporters outside the courtroom. “This discrepancy raises serious questions about the legitimacy of the revised agreement.”
According to Reech, the company also requested that a second witness be summoned, this time from the Ministry of Labour.
He emphasised that the ministry representative would appear as a witness on behalf of UAP, not the court.
“We are waiting to see whether the Ministry of Labour will actually send someone. This individual is not a neutral party but someone we believe collaborated with the company,” Reech claimed. “They allegedly worked together to cancel the original document issued by the relevant labour office and replaced it with a new version, signed by someone with less authority.”
The court has scheduled the next session for Friday, when the second witness is expected to testify.
“We’re confident in our legal position, There is no contradiction in the law, only in the company’s actions, which appear to have been manipulated through the labour office’s system.”he said.
The upcoming hearing on Friday is expected to be pivotal, as both sides prepare to present additional witnesses and key evidence.
The case stems from a strike held in September last year by 57 national staff members of UAP Insurance. The employees protested what they described as an unfair working environment. In response, UAP dismissed the leaders of the National Staff Association, prompting legal action from the affected workers.
Following the terminations, the Ministry of Labour intervened, directing UAP to reinstate the dismissed employees and implement salary increases. However, according to the plaintiffs, UAP has not complied with these directives.
