General to Private: Kiir Crushes Economic Vice President in South Sudan’s $1.7 Billion Corruption Purge

In a stunning political shake-up that underscores the volatility of South Sudan’s leadership, President Salva Kiir Mayardit has dismissed Vice President Benjamin Bol Mel and, in an unprecedented move, stripped him of all military honors, dramatically demoting him from the rank of General to Private.

The decree, announced late Wednesday without an official explanation, severed ties with a man widely viewed as Kiir’s closest ally and potential successor.

The simultaneous removal of the Central Bank Governor and the Head of the Revenue Authority, both close associates of Bol Mel, signals a decisive purge aimed at consolidating the President’s power and confronting a deeply entrenched culture of corruption at the highest levels of government.

An image showing the high-level partnership between South Sudan’s President Salva Kiir and his then-VP, Benjamin Bol Mel, just months before Bol Mel was dramatically fired and demoted from General to Private.

The Grand Purge: A General Reduced to Private

Bol Mel’s removal from the five-member Vice Presidency is significant, but the demotion in the National Security Service is perhaps the most telling aspect of the purge.

In a nation where political power and military rank are inextricably linked, the act of reducing a four-star General to a Private is an extreme and humiliating measure.

It effectively erases his status and sends an unmistakable message to Juba’s political and security elite: no position is untouchable.

Bol Mel’s swift rise—appointed VP in February 2025 and promoted to full General just in September 2025—had fueled intense speculation he was being groomed to take over from the 74-year-old Kiir. His equally abrupt fall terminates this succession narrative, at least for now.

The Root of the Crisis: The $1.7 Billion Corruption Nexus

While the presidential decree was silent on the reasons, international scrutiny and persistent corruption allegations provide the most compelling insight into the timing of the dismissal.

The firing comes on the heels of a scathing report by international human rights monitors:

• The ‘Oil for Roads’ Scandal: Companies affiliated with Bol Mel are accused of receiving an estimated $1.7 billion from the country’s off-budget “Oil for Roads” program between 2021 and 2024.
• Zero Delivery: Despite the massive outlay, little of the value in usable roads was delivered, suggesting the systemic looting of national wealth.
• International Sanctions: Bol Mel has been under U.S. sanctions for alleged corruption since 2017, having previously been characterized as the President’s “principal financial advisor.”

This systemic corruption is not incidental but is viewed by critics as the “engine of South Sudan’s decline,” diverting billions of dollars in oil revenue away from essential services and directly contributing to the nation’s severe humanitarian crisis.

Instability and the Fragile Peace

Bol Mel’s removal is the latest in a series of destabilizing events within the transitional government, which was formed under a 2018 peace deal intended to end years of civil war.

The dramatic consolidation of power, which follows the earlier arrest and treason charging of President Kiir’s main rival, First Vice President Riek Machar, has heightened political tensions.

Conclusion: The End of an Era, The Start of Uncertainty

The purge of Benjamin Bol Mel is more than just a firing; it is a forceful reset of South Sudan’s political hierarchy.

While the public may welcome the action against a figure widely associated with financial scandal, the move simultaneously confirms the extreme fragility of the nation’s political structures.

By dismantling a key pillar of his own government without warning, President Kiir has signaled that political survival remains prioritized over institutional stability.

As the country creeps toward the long-delayed 2026 elections, the dramatic demotion serves as a chilling warning to ambitious elites and leaves the entire peace process vulnerable to the next unforeseen power vacuum.

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