Lone mother of the helpless young orphan

By Awuol Gabriel Arok, Juba, South Sudan

 

Beautiful she is among her sisters,
Deafen by gun’s sounds;
Thinned by poverty;
Ignored by her sister, for her illiteracy,
Traumatized by frequent death of her children;
Forget mother!
And let’s push harder the slippery wall of survival.

President Kiir is making a mockery of a genuine national dialogue in South Sudan

By Daniel Juol Nhomngek, Kampala, Uganda

National Dialouge Steering Committee.jpg

May 30, 2017 (SSB) — The swearing in of a 94-member steering committee to head the national dialogue should not be a source of joy for all of us but rather we should be prepared for more crisis or even future war. It is the missed opportunity as the President has again failed this time to do what is required for the national dialogue to be successful and to bring a permanent peace in a country facing war like South Sudan.

It is sad to blatantly state that the current national dialogue of President Kiir is not national dialogue when test on common sense principle but rather, it is something which is like national dialogue.  This explains why many have reached the conclusion that the present “national dialogue” is not national dialogue but national monologue, which in my opinion is not even that but it is a mockery of national dialogue.

This Dialogue established by President Kiir is a recipe for future war in South Sudan.  This is because it will not bring permanent peace in the country. Though, the war may stop now, that does not mean that it is the current national dialogue that has brought peace but the war has just been postponed for future generation.

What Goes Around Comes Around: An Advice to President Salva Kiir Mayardit

By David Deng Chapath, Kampala, Uganda

What goes around comes around is the proverb which teaches us that the results of things that one has done will someday have an effect on the person who started the events. This was what happened between General Malong and President Kiir Mayardit.

Peace and reconciliation process between Paul Malong and Dau Aturjong, Aweil, Sept 2016

May 30, 2017 (SSB) — On May 09, 2017 South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit sacked the army chief of general staff Gen. Paul Malong Awan by a Republican Decree read out on SSBC but the decree, which did not cite any reasons for his removal. Then, Malong was replaced by his deputy Lt.Gen. James Ajongo Mawut, SPLA deputy chief of general staff for finance and administration. It should be noted that both Malong and Ajongo are both hailed from Aweil.

The President removed Malong thinking that he would be removed like any other generals as he has been doing. However, as soon as he was removed, Malong left the same night heading towards his home town. The fact that Malong left for his hometown did not go well with the President who thought that Malong had started the rebellion against him.

In fact, the president did not sleep well those nights until Malong returned. What troubled the President most was the fact that it would not be as simple as other generals have been doing it. The rebellion by Malong would have marked the end of his if not the government South Sudan.