SOUTH SUDAN’S 2015 ELECTIONS: AN EPITOME OF FAILURE

By Dut Mabior, Kenya

January 18, 2015 (SSB) —  As I prepare my readership to go through this topic, it’s painful to realise that our country is in such a difficult time in history. It is the time we should put our energy together as a people and work toward achieving everlasting peace for all. If we hear of something different other than bringing peace, then we are damned! I hold the view that these elections being talked about are meant to uphold the integrity of our supreme law and renew the legitimacy of our elected government. I don’t think this is the right idea as at now. Below I justify.

Our country has had a number of violations to the constitution and further violations won’t cause harm anymore. It’s well stipulated in the Transition Constitution of the Republic that the president can fire an elected governor of a state amid failure in running the state. The exercise is thereafter followed by an immediate appointment of a caretaker governor after which the state elections are held within 60 days. This has not been the case in Unity state when Governor Taban Deng was fired and replaced with Governor Monytuil (caretaker ), Lake state when Governor Eng. Chol Tong was fired and replaced with Governor Gen. Matur Chut (caretaker ), Jonglei State when Governor Kuol Juuk was appointed to head the ministry of defense and veterans affairs, replaced with Governor Gen. John Nyuon (caretaker) and Northern Bar El Ghazel state when Governor Paul Malong was replaced with Governor Kuel Aguer (caretaker) after promotion to the chief of Military staff. If indeed the constitution is being upheld in totality, then why are the elections in the said states have not been conducted upon the expiry of the caretaker terms? It doesn’t show that, the constitution is being respected. It looks more or less that something is being cooked to suit the diagrammatic scheming in the country.

This constitution has been violated in so many avenues. The ministry of information gave orders barring journalists from interviewing rebels because they would be rebels by osmosis or diffusion, whatever the biological concept behind it. These rebels being citizens of South Sudan have the rights of expression. The citizenry too have the rights to hear the side of the story of the rebels, why did they rebel, a right we have been robbed of by the same body now purporting to protect the law.

If the constitution was being preserved in its totality, then the likes of opinion writers like Isaiah Abraham would not have lost their lives. Others like the G-10 would not be forced into exile after being acquitted by a court of law.

It tells me that the constitution has been violated so many times and violating it again makes the difference the same.

Why would we expose our population to an exercise they are not ready to undertake? The whole of the upper Nile Region with all its states are not ready Lake State is bleeding, Northern Bar El Ghazel has issues too. Who will vote then! This convinces me to priorities peace before elections.

Others ask: Why can’t we vote yet it has been the case in the former Sudan, Syria and many other countries. The results of sidelining others in the matters of national importance leads to a civil war like the one in Syria and the SPLA war with the Khartoum regime which led to the independence of South Sudan. Not unless we want to have a part of our country to claim independence, we won’t advocate for an exercise as shameful as these elections. And why can’t we give examples of Ghana, South Africa, Kenya let alone the examples of failed states like Sudan.

I think, the reality of the Juba chaos is now taking shape. Before these crises, the government was talking of conducting census before elections. The same administration was crying of having no funds to conduct the said exercise. Indeed I quote the president once saying the elections could be differed by a year or two. Why would we be rushed into elections without having done the constitutional prerequisites, does it mean the violence was engineered to exile the political competitors? I fail to answer.

If indeed elections are to be held in the absence of rebels and the G-10, then the elections are to go unopposed, Let’s not vote and allow the electoral commission to announce the candidates winners by default.

Others may think that I am damn mongrel with no resolution and the way forward to legitimize the government after it’s official expiry. South Sudan has its law making body, parliament. Not only the 2015 elections will legitimize the presidency of H. E after the July 9th, this can be extended by an act of Parliament. If the term limit is the problem than, it can be extended by 5 years, I will have no problem with that so long the $517 millions is put into something else required to keep our suffering population in the displaced camps going. Elections are not important now above bringing peace first.

I wonder how our people think, it has been repeatedly said by our president that he is committed to bringing peace to the country. The realisation of this peace is succeeded by an interim period of 2-3 years after which elections are doable. Why do we talk lots about elections now when peace can make a different recommendation or are we not ready to negotiate for peace any more? For me, I will first give peace a chance and then find out what it says to do elections.

If violating the constitution is only applicable when the title is preceded by a caretaker as in the caretaker Governor, then Let’s call our president caretaker president after the July 9th and we first work to bring peace to the country before doing elections.

Ladies and gentlemen,my fellow compatriots, running around defending a constitution that has been violated on so many occasions will not convince a rational thinker of my caliber. Therefore, conducting these elections will only confirm our readiness to be like Sudan and Syria, indeed an epitome of failure.

The author is a student of Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Kenyatta University, Nairobi Kenya.

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The opinion expressed here is solely the view of the writer. The veracity of any claim made are the responsibility of the author, not PaanLuel Wël: South Sudanese Bloggers (SSB) website. If you want to submit an opinion article or news analysis, please email it to paanluel2011@gmail.com. SSB do reserve the right to edit material before publication. Please include your full name, email address and the country you are writing from.

Did Governor Joseph Bakasoro Condemn the Dinka Community?

By PaanLuel Wel, Juba

January 18, 2015 (SSB) —  Some opinions have been offered about the veracity of the “politically incorrect” statement attributed to Governor Joseph Bakasoro of Western Equatoria state.

Here is what I know, I being someone from the ground who, though not a journalist of any kind or type, is nevertheless interested in the affairs of our republic.

What we all know is that there are Dinka pastoralists (from Jonglei and Lakes states) who have settled in the Equatoria region not only with their families, but their cattle as well. The presence of Dinka cattle among the farming communities of the Equatoria region has been a source of perennial friction; Nimule is the best case in point.

In Mundri, there has been a running conflict between the Dinka pastoralists (mostly from Lakes state) and the host community who complain of their farms being destroyed by the cattle. “In October 2014, the fighting erupted after cattle destroyed farms. Several people were injured, including a little girl.”

A 2-day conference was convened on 15-16 January 2015 between the host community and the Dinka pastoralists to resolve the issue.

The meeting, attended by Governor Bakasoro and all the top politicians of Western Equatoria state and leaders of the Dinka cattle camps, resolved the following: (1) Guns be repatriated with immediate effect (2) Cattle leave Greater Mundri within 21 days. It is from this Pastoralists/Farmers peace conference that news emerged of the “politically incorrect” remarks attributed to Governor Bakasoro.

With that being the background information, “seekers of truth” are demanding the proof that the governor has actually uttered such “revealing” remarks.

A verifiable proof may be in forms of an audio or video clip or a confirmation from one of the participants in that said conference.

However, I should mention here that it was after the end of the conference (January 16th) that news emerged (January 17th) of the statement attributed to the Governor Bakasoro; nothing so far has indicated that the statement was uttered prior to, within or after the conference.

The only reason why someone would connect the two is because the statement in question is addressing precisely the very issue that was the agenda of the pastoralists/farmers peace conference.

This is what I know, so far, as a concerned citizen of South Sudan. It is up to you as an individual to form your own opinion about the veracity of the remark in question.

Did the governor say it—before, during or after the conference? What do you know, think?

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The opinion expressed here is solely the view of the writer. The veracity of any claim made are the responsibility of the author, not PaanLuel Wël: South Sudanese Bloggers (SSB) website. If you want to submit an opinion article or news analysis, please email it to paanluel2011@gmail.com. SSB do reserve the right to edit material before publication. Please include your full name, email address and the country you are writing from.