South Sudan Chief Justice Among the Suspected Cases of Coronavirus
Chief Justice Chan Reec Madut speaking at a gathering. Chan has refused to be tested from coronavirus despite all attempt to get him and his family tested(Photo credit: SSNN)
March 20, 2020(SSNN) — Latest reports from family members and aids of South Sudan Chief Justice, Chan Reech Madut, revealed that the Chief Justice could be among the first cases of Coronavirus in the world’s youngest nation.
Speaking to South Sudan News Now correspondents, who reached out to family members in attempt to investigate earlier reports that the Chief Justice despised health authorities at the airport, the family members who spoke on condition of anonymity said that Justice Reech could be seen coughing and having high fever two days after he received his sons from Europe;
“I do not want to declare that the Chief Justice is sick or anything but he has a fever and he coughs occasionally” said a family member,
Asked if the senior judge has been screened or if he would accept to be tested for COVID-19, one of his close aids said, the Chief Justice was not considering such an option for now.
“Why would he be tested, he does not have the virus, none of the boys is sick, he is okay” the aid continued.
The Chief Justice reportedly violated the order of president Salva Kiir 4 days ago after refusing his sons to be tested for COVID-19 upon their arrival from UK, a country with high number of coronavirus cases.
The Chief Justice also refused to be tested when he returned from Dubai last week ahead of his sons arrival from Europe and according to his daughter, the health authorities did not handled the case properly.
According to health authorities, the long-serving Chief Justice confronted the heath scientists at the airport, who wanted his sons to be screened, despite that his elder son was visibly showing symptoms such as coughing at the time.
The Chief Justice reportedly arrived at the airport with bodyguards shortly after his four sons arrived and dictated that they should not be tested because he believes there was no point to do so.
After he quarrel with the health authorities and threatening them to leave his family alone, the health authorities contacted the Minister of Interior, Gen. Mabuto Mamuor, who ordered a convoy of at least four pickups full of soldiers to re-enforce the health authorities at the airport.
Shortly after the security forces arrived, Chan walked away with his three sons threatening to return for his fourth son who was kept inside the quarantine unite to be tested.
This was not the first time, Chief Justice Chan appeared on the media for violating the law he is expected to protect. For the last decade, Chan has made rounds on the internet for appointing his daughter as a senior judge and for beating up defense lawyers who presented cases he did not like.
At the time of this report, South Sudan News Now made attempt to contact the Chief Justice but he has refused to talk to media.
Responding to media, Ateny Wek Ateny, the press secretary of President Kiir, defended the Chief Justice as a law abiding citizen and instead blames the incident on how he was approached by the authorities.
“Chief Justice is one of the law abiding citizens, maybe the approach by the screening team at the airport might not have been proper,” Ateny said on Monday.
South Sudan has not confirmed a case of coronavirus so far but all the neighboring countries have confirmed cases leaving doubts if South Sudan is really testing the pandemics correctly.
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