Dut Kuot Akook, a Northern Bahr el Ghazal-based activist who has been in a legal battle with State Governor Simon Ober Mawut over a defamation case, has been sentenced to one year and two months’ imprisonment.
Kuot, who was employed by the state Ministry of Finance, was arrested on February 26, 2025, following an allegation of defaming the sitting Governor, Simon Ober Mawut.
The accusation stemmed from an article Kuot wrote that highlighted perceived loopholes within the state government.
In the court ruling statement, extended to Standard Zone News, the verdict read by Grade Two Judge Francis Edward in Aweil Town stated that Dut Kuot Akook’s conviction is effective from May 22, 2025, for violating section 289.
Speaking to Standard Zone News, Achiek Garang Tong, and wife of Dut Kuot Akook, argued that the court ruling was unfair, stating that the reading was done in the absence of family members.
“We thought that in a final court ruling, my husband would have been asked to present his pieces of evidence in my presence and other family relatives. And also, the court is supposed to make its decision when I am around so that I understand and hear the court ruling, so that I know what my husband has done wrong to the state governor,” Achiek said.
“I think there is nothing wrong my husband has done, because if he had done something wrong, they would have waited for us to attend,” she added.
She further appealed to the state government to show fairness in handling her husband’s case, emphasizing the importance of serving justice to everyone in the state.
“I want to tell the governor and the judge who ruled the court case that everyone has the right to listen and understand the mistake committed by the accused. It is not good to rule out the final verdict without my presence,” she argued.
In response, the Deputy Press Secretary in Office of the Governor, Mr. Garang Makuei, who also attended the court as the Governor’s representative, stated that the ruling was fair, dismissing Kuot’s wife’s claim as false.
“Those claims made by his wife are lies because there were some family members present during the court ruling,” Makuei claimed.
Makuei further defended the judge, saying, “There was nowhere the judge messed up in the proceeding.”
“The court proceeding from the beginning up to today shows that the court was fair and there was no bias. There is nowhere where the judge messed up,” he defended the judge.
The court has granted the defendant a two-week period to formally file an appeal against the verdict.
