VZCZCXRO1392
OO RUEHGI RUEHMA RUEHROV
DE RUEHKH #0241/01 0501433
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
O 191433Z FEB 08
FM AMEMBASSY KHARTOUM
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC IMMEDIATE 9982
INFO RUCNFUR/DARFUR COLLECTIVE
RUCNIAD/IGAD COLLECTIVE
RHMFISS/CJTF HOA

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 KHARTOUM 000241 
 
SIPDIS 
 
DEPT FOR AF/SPG, AF A/S FRAZER, SE WILLIAMSON 
ADDIS ABABA FOR USAU 
DEPT PLS PASS USAID FOR AFR/SUDAN 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PGOV PREL PINR ECON SOCI AU SU
SUBJECT: PRESIDENT BASHIR RESHUFFLES CABINET:  ALI MARDI OUT, AL-JAZ 
AND AL-ZUBEIR SWITCH PLACES 
 
REF:  KHARTOUM 147 
 
¶1.  (SBU) Summary: On February 14, President Bashir shifted more 
than a quarter of ministerial positions in the cabinet of the 
Government of National Unity (GNU).  In particular, local observers 
believe that Awad Al-Jaz' shift from Energy to Finance Ministry will 
strengthen both his own influence and the performance of his new 
ministry.  Two of those demoted (from Finance and Interior) were 
outspoken hardliners in the National Congress Party. End Summary. 
 
¶2.  (U) On February 14, President Omar Al-Bashir shuffled Sudan's 
Council of Ministers, naming eight (out of a total of 30) new 
cabinet ministers and four state ministers.  Most significantly, 
controversial Justice Minister Mohammed Ali Marhdi was removed from 
the cabinet, Interior Minister al-Zubeir Bashir Taha (a particular 
thorn in the side of the SPLM) was demoted to Agriculture, and 
Finance Minister al-Hassan and Energy Minister Al-Jaz traded 
positions.  President Bashir stated that the reshuffle was intended 
to reactivate the GNU as Sudan enters a period of political 
activity, including elections scheduled for 2009. 
 
¶3.  (U) Cabinet and state minister appointments are listed below, 
along with their previous positions: 
 
Ministers: 
 
Minister of Justice - Abdul Basit Salih Sabdarat (most recently 
Minister of Federal Governance, Sabdarat served as Justice Minister 
in 1998) 
 
Minister of Interior - Ibrahim Mahmoud Hamid (previously Governor of 
Kassala state) 
 
Minister of Finance and National Economy - Awad Ahmed Al-Jaz 
(previously Minister of Energy and Mining) 
 
Minister of Energy and Mining - al-Zubeir Ahmed al-Hassan 
(previously Minister of Finance and National Economy) 
 
Minister of Federal Governance - LTG Abdul Rahman Said (previously 
Minister of Science and Technology) 
 
Minister of Science and Technolgy - Ibrahim Ahmed Omer (previously 
advisor to President Bashir on media matters) 
 
Minister of Agriculture and Forestry - al-Zubeir Bashir Taha 
(previously Minister of Interior) 
 
Ministry Animal Resources and fisheries - Mohammed Ahmed al-Tahir 
Abu Kalabish (previously State Minister of Education) 
 
State Ministers: 
 
State Minister of Investment - Salman Suleiman al-Safi (previously 
State Minister of Foreign Trade) 
 
State Minister of Foreign Trade - al-Semaih al-Saddiq (previously 
State Minister of Investment) 
 
State Minister of Health - Hassan Abu Ayesha (previous position 
unknown) 
 
State Minister of Higher education and Scientific Research - Fathi 
Mohammed Khalifa (previously State Minister of Health) 
 
¶4.  (SBU) Ali Mardi has become the focus of criticism for the slow 
pace with which the GNU has tackled legislative changes needed for 
national elections in 2009 and required by the Comprehensive Peace 
Agreement, notably a new National Security Law and the Police Law. 
A member of the Umma Party, President Bashir's National Congress 
Party may have regarded him as expendable.  Sabdarat, his 
replacement as Justice Minister, has a reputation for being 
compliant, ambitious, and has served in various capacities in the 
government since 1989.  The now former Ministers of Finance 
(Al-Hassan) and Interior (Taha) were outspoken hardliners who 
frequently went beyond stated regime policy in criticizing the 
United States and the NCP's partner in government, the SPLM. 
 
FROM ENERGY TO FINANCE MINISTRY 
------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) On February 17, Abdelmoneim Mustafa El Amin, Executive 
Secretary at the Assessment and Evaluation Commission (AEC) and 
 
SIPDIS 
former Sudanese Ambassador to Japan, told econoff that "This 
re-shuffling is all that people have been talking about."  El Amin 
 
KHARTOUM 00000241  002 OF 002 
 
 
was most interested in the changes to the Ministry of Energy and 
Mining and the Ministry of Finance, saying that reforming the 
Ministry of Finance is the most likely reason for the change.  He 
stated that "Al-Jaz's sphere of influence will expand while the 
incompetent and noxious Zubair Al-Hassan will still be a figurehead. 
 Both ministries will be functionally controlled by Awad Al-Jaz." 
El Amin added that other reasons, including a personal rivalry 
between Al-Jaz and Al-Hassan may have been responsible the change. 
According to El Amin, the position at the Ministry of Finance is 
more important than the position at the Ministry of Energy and 
Mining, and Al-Jaz is being rewarded for developing Sudan's 
petroleum. 
 
¶6.  (U) Editorials and press reports agreed that Al-Jaz will reform 
the Ministry of Finance.  Muhammad Latif in "Al-Sudani" opened his 
article stating, "The first joke to follow the announcement of a 
cabinet reshuffle is 'After Al-Jaz extracted all of Sudan's oil, he 
decided to move to the Ministry of Finance to control the oil 
revenues!"  According to Latif, the former Minister of Finance, 
Zubair Al-Hassan, was known as someone who liked to please everyone 
and that the Ministry of Finance was always full of people coming to 
ask for special favors and requests.  He said that Al-Jaz will end 
that and make the Ministry of Finance a more efficient, modern, and 
effective institution. 
 
¶7.  (SBU) COMMENT:  Al-Jaz's appointment as Finance Minister comes 
after his successful tenure as Oil and Gas Minister and is the most 
recent of several measures over the last two months -- including the 
removal of an inefficient undersecretary and introduction of a 
modern and transparent budget format (reftel) -- intended to 
strengthen the Finance Ministry.  However, this appointment will do 
little to ease Southern suspicions of lack of transparency in 
revenue sharing, as Al-Jaz now will be responsible for all of the 
GoS's finances, rather than only oil revenues.  The changes do seem 
to decrease somewhat the power of some hardliners within the 
cabinet, but there are many others within the Sudanese regime with 
similar views. 
 
FERNANDEZ