BY: Wani Tombe Lako, SOUTH SUDAN, MAY/21/2013, SSN;

The insidiousness of violent civil strife in South Sudan (SS) is undermining all local, national, regional, and international confidence, in the peoples of SS abilities, to look after themselves by themselves within the remit of the nascent sovereign Republic of South Sudan (RoSS). These communities of interests are justifiably perturbed by the foreseeable unstable futures, which the RoSS appears to be heading towards.

At the societal level, we in SS appear to lack common futures, and this persistence of uncommon futures, is the main reason for the perturbation referred to above.

It is mind-boggling as to why on earth, do we in SS appear to proudly parade the extravagances of violence in the RoSS as the justification, and reaffirmation of the doctrine of self-determination, which gave birth to the RoSS. Why do we want to celebrate the sanctity of the doctrine of self-determination in a fashion which, to objective local, national, regional, and international onlookers, the RoSS is nothing, but a nascent human killing field as it were?

It appears that, we in the RoSS are so taken up by the pursuance of violence to the extent that we ended up treating our situation as being very normal. No, our situation is not normal by all counts. We need to step back and take a stock counting.

The operationlisation of the doctrine of self-determination must not be turned into a kind of ideological warfare in the RoSS. The doctrine of self-determination is all about freedoms, rights, and spaces that we ought to enjoy in the RoSS. The doctrine of self-determination is about the celebration of difference, and the upholding of the right to differ, in an amicable fashion. This is the essence of the letter and spirit of self-determination.

The doctrine of self-determination abhors and despises the institutionalization of violence, for any socio-cultural, economic, financial, political, ideological, religious, tribal, ethnic, and moral reasons.

The continuous practice of violence by us in the RoSS, and whereas, we are, at the same time, aspiring to lead a viable nation, is rather incompatible at the least, and dangerous at worse. It is bound to erode all available confidences and trusts in us, as peoples claiming to be champions, and beneficiaries, of the doctrine of self-determination, in this part of Africa.

With rampant violence in the RoSS, it becomes increasingly difficult, if not impossible for some of us, in the RoSS, to reify ourselves that, we are a people, purporting to be working for the comprehensive interests of us all in the RoSS, albeit that, we lack common and positively reciprocal confidences as peoples.

I must reiterate here that violence amounts to the most degrading level of political manipulation, and lowly disregard, for the lives of the peoples who innocently continue to live in political illusion that, out there, in the RoSS, there is a polity, and genuine political group(s), who sincerely believe in their (the peoples’) welfare and general happiness.

Violence in the RoSS is kept alive by political elites, who always anaesthetise the peoples of the RoSS, through cheap political methodologies, including the manipulation of their raw emotions, by means of misleading tribal anecdotal shenanigans, to masquerade as issues of national positive concern.

We must stop using the doctrine of self-determination as a dividing rod in the RoSS, in order to therefore, benefit from the trite political trick of divide and rule. We in the RoSS ought to know that all of us are/were victims of our histories, and now, all of us must also share the doctrinal blanket of self-determination as it were. There ought not to be any moral, legal, and political room for entertaining the intention of permanently pushing some of the sons and daughters of SS, out into the cold, and not to benefit from the warmth of this doctrinal blanket of self-determination.

We in the RoSS must know that our collective security and happiness is a function of our inclusiveness. That is, our security and happiness is only guaranteed in our sharing of whatever good values are there in the RoSS.

We in the RoSS must anxiously guard against instances where unscrupulous political groups, shall forever and maliciously, convert peoples’ rights into their misleading privileges. The right to peace and happiness in the RoSS must not be predicated upon the execution of tribal warfare; however this may be camouflaged in security parlance.

Civil unrest characterised by tribal anger is not the best methodology of interrogating issues of governance in the RoSS. Current rebellions in the RoSS have various symptoms of tribal anger and revenge. The reaction at the level of the State ought to be more mature.

I would like to consider the current rebellions in the RoSS as some kind of political and security national emergencies. In any viable polity and country, there are always arrangements at the national level for the unforeseen emergencies as these which have now befallen us in the RoSS. For God’s sake, let us try to wane ourselves from answering fire with fire. It is extremely politically dangerous and despicable, nationally choking and degrading, socially humiliating and dehumanizing, and individually disorientating.

It is politically dangerous and despicable because it portrays us as peoples devoid of some aspects of human wisdoms, and peoples who mimic all acts and omissions to their own detriment. Politics include the managing of conflicting interests in society. When we decide to respond to outbursts of violent rebellions with constant fire, we deprive ourselves of the opportunity to calm down the situation, and find other means of resolving the problem. This is not a naive approach, but rather, it is an approach informed by past experiences in our human society.

There is no need to waste political capital by engaging in a prolonged violence, in which many innocent women, children, and men are killed and wasted, and therefore, depriving many peoples of their right to life, and therefore their comprehensive human rights, in order to secure future human rights of supposed others, for us only to come back to the negotiating table, to resolve the same problem the subject matter of the said violence.

When human beings like us in the RoSS spend most of their time waging mini wars against themselves, then, we must rest assured that, there is a terrible state of uncertainty, and general hopelessness in the RoSS. There is no reasonable human society that wants to exist in a permanent warlike environment like we seem to like. What seems to be the problem in the RoSS that makes everyone suddenly to want to be someone very important in government?

I have said this already, but I am going to say it again, and in fact, I am going to say it every single time I write, till the end of my days, if that is what it takes to educate the peoples of the RoSS.

I am going to tell you that, not all of us can become ministers and presidents in our life time in the RoSS. Therefore, stop killing our people because you want to rule as a governor, president or a minister. You cannot just become ministers, governors, or presidents just because you want to have the salaries and power attached to these positions, whereas, the rest of the peoples of South Sudan are dying of hunger, thirst, diseases and such like, while you shall be flying to Europe for malaria treatment because you are you.

On the other hand, you cannot become a president, governor or minster and remain in the same position forever, and when you fail to become one of the above, you declare a war or a rebellion. We cannot live like this in the RoSS. We as a government must learn to ignore some of these claims for ruling the RoSS, and just consider them as issues of political differences that ought to be resolved through negotiations. We cannot use the military in all big and small political misunderstandings in the RoSS.

The peoples of the RoSS must stop treating one another as actual or potential enemies. As a political entity that came into existence due to the rejection of politics of hurt and cruelty, we therefore, ought to be the last peoples on earth, to want to inflict on ourselves, the kinds of agonies that should only be expected from peoples who have not gone through paradigms of politics of hurt and cruelty.

I must reiterate here that, the only peoples who shall restore hope and positive aspirations on the peoples of South Sudan are the peoples of South Sudan themselves. No miracle is going to happen so that peace and tranquillity reign supreme in the RoSS. It is the peoples of the RoSS who are the first and the last responsible peoples for their own safety and harmony.

This political quagmire that we are in is our own making. For once, let us be brave enough to admit that, most of the problems we are facing now are due to the fact that, we completely misunderstood and misinterpreted the doctrine of self-determination. Some of us in the RoSS have this notion that, the birth of the sovereign RoSS must be guaranteed by a series of recurring mini wars, mostly fought to settle old grudges, and new ones, motivated by personal and group interests, but euphemistically presented to the peoples of the RoSS, to masquerade as a the continuation of wars of liberation. We cannot just treat conflict over constitutional and other governmental posts, as among a few in the RoSS, as liberation wars.

We have to be able to draw a clear objective moral and legal boundary, between personal greed, and the defence of popular interests which amount to a war of liberation.

Why do we want the RoSS to become an extremely unstable country along the lines of some of the most unstable African countries, and unfortunately, some of these African countries are our immediate neighbours. If these mini wars are fought over issues of wealth sharing, it is possible to make every South Sudanese rich if we just stop killing ourselves, and concentrate on how to beneficially exploit the resources we have.

The RoSS is a vast country endowed with myriad of rich natural resources, and populated by a few millions of us, which makes these unreasonable wars over wealth and such like just meaningless. We must not become hostages to our own human weakness, and a very bad example of human failure. Let us all in honest and holy unison, forgive one another. Our destiny as peoples of this nascent African State is dependent on our forgiveness of one another, our love of one another, and our genuine quest for constructive reconciliation.

We in the RoSS must learn from human history. Positive socio-economic human development, and other aspects of positive human development, are not truly dependent on frequencies of changing government leadership of a country. Our major problem in the RoSS is not about who is ruling us, but rather, it is intrinsically about how are we being ruled.

This matter of how are we being ruled does not include the frequency or change of leadership or overthrowing of governments by military force. However, the methodology of coming to power is essential, but I do not want to dwell on that at this critical moment of our bloody history in the RoSS. Let us formulate the framework of how we want to be ruled, and those who want to rule shall have to follow this framework. Others will call this a constitutional process, but, that is not what I have in mind at the moment.

We need to have the moral framework in place in the RoSS. This moral framework ought to be definitely consistent, with the socio-cultural mores prevailing in the RoSS. We cannot just rush to import some run-of-the-mill constitutional framework, which is available even on the internet, and just slump it on the peoples of the RoSS, without there being the moral, social, cultural, and psychological foundations on which such a constitutional framework shall sit and constructively grow.

The peoples of the RoSS must have their own intrinsic imagination as to how they want to be governed. The relativism of the peoples of the RoSS, must be understood, not as being against constitutional universalism, but, as a constructive particularism, informed by factual human variables on the ground in the RoSS, and then use this factual human variables as foundations to work towards what ought to be, in a harmonious fashion.

The operationlisation of the doctrine of self-determination in the RoSS shall not become communally satisfactory if we divide ourselves in the RoSS into “we and they” typologies. If we do that in the RoSS, then, we risk rekindling endless series of demands for further self-determinations within the remit of the multicultural and multi-tribal society of the RoSS. This danger can only be avoided by love; forgiveness; and reconciliation as among the various peoples of the RoSS.

We must understand that, human mismanagement of various opportunities and resources has led to the hitherto unitary Sudan breaking up, giving birth to the RoSS. We in the RoSS know very well that, the chronic historical political misunderstandings between the then northern and southern Sudan contributed negatively in the subsequent civil strife in the hitherto unitary Sudan. We in the RoSS know very well that, we can eloquently interrogate the discourses of human hurt, cruelty, and marginalisation as peoples.

Therefore, if these are all true of us, why are we then not able to chart out the right path for collective human journey, towards the destiny of nation, instead of state building?

The RoSS as an abstract political organism, with the geographical characteristics thereof, is not a sufficient condition for the existence of a viable nation of the RoSS. The human element of the abstract State of the RoSS ought to be put in reasonable consideration, and at the moment, it appears as if, we are only concerned with the political State of the RoSS.

At the level of the RoSS, the situation is nationally degrading because, the RoSS as a country is among the richest countries in the world, but for human greed, corruption, selfishness, and associated bad faith, we are not benefiting from this wealth. As mentioned above, the RoSS as a country is very rich, but, it is very poor now due to historical and contemporaneous human mismanagement at certain critical levels of governance, and not because it has not been endowed with commensurate resources that make nations very rich.

It is therefore degrading as a nation for us to rely very much on our human weaknesses as pillars of formal governance. This situation must change if we want to be respected by others internationally. It is socially humiliating and dehumanising because, the peoples of the RoSS who have been reduced to total dependency on others for survival, have got human pride and dignity that they would like to uphold as nationals and citizens of the RoSS.

Due to continuous hostilities in the RoSS, we risk making some peoples of the RoSS suffer from diminished self esteem, a prerequisite for personal and group industry. This is equally disastrous for the growing generation to see their parents and such like, begging for food and other life essentials. This can make them forget about their personal self-respect, as well as respect for their elders and parents and at the same time, these young people can also despise anything called society, because to them, it does not make sense, they cannot fit in as societal members.

It is hoped that, those of us entrusted with the responsibility of looking after the peoples of the RoSS, at both federal and state levels, pay heed to my cries for love, forgiveness, and reconciliation as among the peoples of the RoSS. For those of us in charge in federal and state government, we can be likened to human persons, who are unable to see their faces, unless they use looking glasses/mirrors.

To those of us in government therefore, the peoples of the RoSS, that is the public at large, are our looking glasses/ mirrors, and we ought to listen to the peoples of the RoSS, whenever these peoples of the RoSS alert us to some dirt defiling our governmental faces.

For those of us in federal and state government respectively, violence is such defiling dirt on our faces, and we ought to wash our political faces of it. The situation is disorientating at the individual level due to the fact that, the individual has been conditioned to feel that, there is a political contract between her/him and the government, albeit an unwritten contract.

The binding terms of such a political contract include the fact that, when such an individual is undergoing some trauma due to violence in society, the government is to come promptly to her/his rescue and render all necessary goods and services to make the lives of such people liveable. There is no term in this political contract that expressly or impliedly means that, the peoples themselves are the providers of essential goods and services in times of violent emergencies, thus replacing federal and state governmental institutions.

Time and again, some of us in both federal and state government fall back on our tribal institutions to confront violent situations in the RoSS. Some of us in federal and state institutions actually initiate such violence and sustain them for political gains. This must end for the better political health of the RoSS. Violence must not become a mode of political conduct in the RoSS, especially during these times of self-determination. Politicians indulging in violence can easily be caught off guard and suffer some irreparable political damage. Political groups should not delude themselves that the seemingly politically unsophisticated folks are hard of political sight and hearing.

The author is Professor of Social and Rural Development and Lecturer in Laws. He be contacted at wani.lako@yahoo.com

BY: Justin Ambago Ramba, UK, MAY/15/2013, SSN;

The wonderful readers may agree with me that the problems of the nascent state of South Sudan is not confined to issues to do with the constitution, be that the current transitional constitution or the much publicized permanent constitution which is in the making.

This is not in any way to belittle the role of the constitution here, but rather to bring to light that these constitutions are subject to manipulations and violations under the current ruling clique. They [Kiir & company] can easily do it at any stage of the process from the point of inception to the point of adoption, and the current transitional constitution is a living example of that.

Another important issue is the national healing and reconciliation process which has already exposed the current leadership’s incapability to oversee such a grant national exercise especially when it has spectacularly failed to initiate an internal reconciliation within the same ruling party. The bishops, yes they have been brought in.

But how are they [bishops] going to instill the needed will into these former rebel commanders turn politicians starting with the top man himself to accept to go back to apologize to their victims or their living relatives. That is the South African way and that’s only how it can work in South Sudan. The perpetuators and the victims must come face to face!

On the other hand many people have been subjected to arbitrarily arrests throughout Salva Kiir and the SPLM intelligentsia’s tenure in office since they last stopped being rebels. Not surprising of course it has been the Press Community which has so far suffered the most as they continue to expose the wrong doers, however many other victims have as well included people from every section of the South Sudanese society. Many too were extrajudicial killed in the hands of government’s secret agents.

Sadly enough, if that is the right expression, all these violations to the basic human rights of the victims had taken place and continue to do so in the presence of the country’s transitional constitution. This is a constitution that approves the freedom of expression, but also provides every citizen the right to a fair hearing in a court of law.

So where have we the citizens gone wrong to be victimized this much? And is it an issue about having a constitution when we already have one or is it about a bunch of people in office who prefer to violate the constitution?

With the above introduction we can now delve into the core issue no other than the ingrained attitude by President Salva Kiir Mayardit and his inner circles to run the country in a way that only serves their groups interest.

This leadership’s history in office over the last eight years or so is more than enough to justify every statement that portrays Kiir Mayardit’s leadership as non-visionary.

We know that president Salva Kiir still has a handful supporters of fainthearted opportunists who have themselves out preformed their boss on several occasions, in as far as the abuse of power is concerned. Is it not the case when the president went ballistic in his speech to his cabinet and senior officials accusing them of back stabbing the government in which they serve?

This is what he said: Sudan Tribune (01/05/ 2013): and I quote:

“They talk as if they are not part of it [government] but if you follow them, you find they are the same people who are the ones involved in corruption. They are the ones involved in arbitrary arrest, but they come out in the day and say they are not part of it”, he said.

Given the president’s above acknowledgment that his ministers are behind those heinous crimes committed the nationwide, much of his statement can go all the way to not only unravel the mystery surrounding the death of the 25-year-old former traffic officer from Mayom County of the Unity State (the Western Upper Nile).

According to the relatives’ story in the public media, the deceased young man had gone to a nearby shop on the 28 March, where he went missing and never to return home. Two days later his body was found dumped behind Hon. Salva Mathok, the RSS deputy minister of Interior’s house, with traces of blood also leading to the deputy minister’s house now suspected by the relatives to be the likely crime scene.

He [president] also acknowledged the many arbitrary arrests taking place all across the country at the directives of his cabinet ministers and government senior officials as highlighted in his quoted speech.

If you didn’t know yet – then better know now that two well-known journalists in Juba, Michael Koma and Alfred Taban have been harassed, detained, and repeatedly interrogated on the directives of the deputy minister of interior in spite of the fact that he [Mathok} stands very tall in the centre of this barbaric crime.

Don’t you agree with me my dear reader - that any sound minded individual would have seen the relevancy of the office of the prosecutor-general handling this murder case, completely on its own without having to involve the ministry of interior so as to avoid any conflicts of interest? This is a very important point if we are to talk of justice in the true sense of the word.

In this case injustice is already in the making since Hon. Salva Mathok is considered as the prime suspect by the relatives of the deceased young man and still he refuses to resign his position so as to allow for an impartial investigation. By so doing he has already compromised the position of the government department [ministry of Interior] that he continues to supervise. And add to it his subsequent actions towards these journalists; you can NEVER miss to see the obstruction of Justice being committed in a broad day light.

Of course no one out there is too naïve not to understand that officials like Salva Mathok have all the approval to not only enjoy impunity in a case as big as this murder crime now at hand, but he can as well go on unquestioned by the president to further abuse his position by detaining those journalists for publishing articles presented to them by the relatives of the deceased.

Hon. Salva Mathok is a classic example of President Kiir’s loyalists who enjoy the unlimited freedom to corrupt with impunity as long as they fulfill the boss’s criteria of being good members of the cabinet i.e. ministers who acknowledge that the freedom allowing them to commit all sorts of corruption and immoralities has been availed to them by the president who in turn expects them to remain loyal to his person as much as possible.

And as long as these loyal ministers and senior officials stick to the president’s terms, they will continue to enjoy their ministerial positions and be protected by the government and the president. This is a president whose sole concern is how to remain in power regardless of all the living hell his leadership is delivering on the poor masses, day and night.

A leadership that has ruthlessly presided over one of the most corrupt regimes in human history throughout its eight years in office should only be told that enough is enough.

Furthermore it’s no longer any secret how some people lose their position in Salva Kiir’s government while others who are indeed true embodiments of corruption and theft remain to serve. This is not difficult to decipher, for the whole thing is all about whether a corrupted official eats alone or shares his/her loot with the boss. What that means is everybody’s guess.

Here we are in front of a leadership that has no respect for any form of constitution or institution. We are all witness to how the Interim constitution was repeatedly violated all through the six years that followed the CPA.

Again from 9th July 2011 following the declaration of Independence to date the so-called transitional constitution although meticulously tailored to slim fit the President – yet he too has failed to honour it.

Thus those who wrongly assume that the way out of RSS mess can be found in the coming permanent constitution while retaining the same visionless and grossly incompetent leadership are in fact trying to indefinitely postpone any hopes of the country to change for the better.

They too are playing against the basic rule which says he or she who fails to do well in small thing cannot handle big things. South Sudan’s future in what is now the 21st century – the digital age – is no domain for the current crude leadership style!

If you have been told that there are no other people in the whole of South Sudan who can better rule the country besides the current leadership on top of them president Salva Kiir Mayardit and his deputy Dr. Riek Machar and you happen to believe that, then my fellow you must have been exposed to the worse type of “brainwashing” – that’s if of course if I thought you actually have the brain to be washed in the first place!

The monstrous nature of the current totalitarian government that is on its final march to become a “One Man Rule” will continue to multiply with each and every day Salva Kiir Mayardit remains in office.

Evidence after evidence has shown beyond any reasonable doubt that president Salva Kiir’s has developed an uncontrollable tendency to over-ride all the country’s constitutions and institutions, a fact only made easier by the transitional constitution specially cooked for him by his co-conspirator Hon. John Luk Jok [his current minister for Legal Affairs] in return for a foothold in the president’s inner circles and of course a ministerial position that is likely to extend as far as Kiir remains in office.

“Many agreements dishonoured”, is a familiar impression that an average citizen of South Sudan holds against the subsequent Jallaba governments that ruled and continue to rule in the republic of Sudan. However not very long following our independence, we now have a leader who stands for nothing but
“Many Promises dishonoured”.

And the fact that even after nearly a decade in office president Salva Kiir is still looking forward for yet another term in office is a clear evidence of his political and power greediness which is going to be a frank obstacle to the peaceful transfer of power in the nascent country.

A leader with this kind of attitude is also likely to do everything he can to remain in office even if that means dropping whole chapters or articles from the country’s constitution at its best – or can even go to length arresting or liquidating opponents and those perceived as potential enemies while doing way with the constitution all together.

These are some of the core issues for you to consider my fellow compatriots. The earlier we acknowledge it today and move to eliminate it from taking root the better – before it is too late to salvage anything.

In other wards we can go all the way and write the most wonderful permanent constitution in the whole universe, but as long as we are still ruled by the current leadership or any of its kind, the constitution may not even be worth the paper or the ink used!

Author: Dr. Justin Ambago Ramba. Secretary General – United South Sudan Party [USSP]. He can be reached at: justinramba@doctors.net.uk

BY: Agou A. Kur, WINNIPEG, CANADA, MAY/12/2013, SSN;

Throughout the ages, various self-declared prophets have warned about the doomsdays and the end of the world but as a student of politics not a prophet, I hereby warn my country about the coming apocalyptic election in 2015, which will be our doomsday depending on how we conduct and handle its aftermath. Whereas the doomsday prophesies are based on superstition and alleged divine revelation, far from it, my hypothesis is based on empirical evidences and analysis of our past and current political developments in South Sudan.

I will argue in this article that 2015 election will be the defining moment in the history of our country. It will either make or break us as a nation because it will test our union which is weak due to lack of institutions, norms and constitutional framework that would have safeguarded and channelled the political processes including the election.

It is now clear that the forthcoming South Sudan’s election has generated a great deal of interest that is almost equal to the excitement of the days leading to the 2011 referendum and the subsequent independence on July the 9th of the same year. The difference however, is the fact that during the referendum, all South Sudanese irrespective of their regions, political ideologies and, yes, tribal differences, were all united in their determination for freedom and secession from North Sudan. That I will admit was our proudest moment.

Unfortunately now, and only time will tell, that if the recent developments and political intrigues can tell us anything, then it can be concluded that we are going into this election unorganised, with elevated tension created by political ambitions and sadly divided on tribal lines as politicians and supporters alike are intoxicated by their quest for power and blinded by tribal loyalty and with the “It is our turn to rule” mentality.

Consider the fact that there are over hundred tribes in South Sudan and all are proud with sense of entitlement want their son or daughter to be the president. The outcome can only in the observation of this author be nothing but tragic for it is not an election but a contest for a pure madness.

The background
Now, let me give you a little background as to why this author believes that we are doomed unless something is done and done quickly then the future of South Sudan is in peril. I will not waste your precious time on the history of South Sudan civil war and how it got the independent. That is a common knowledge to you. I will begin with the election of April 2010 in which the current leaders got elected from the president to the national assembly, the governors of the ten states and all states assemblies.

All of them were elected in the first election ever in South Sudan, and almost the entire process and results was bitterly contested in all levels and regions of South Sudan. Some of those who disputed the outcome of election had legitimate claims while others were opportunists driven by greed. So they took up arms and rebelled, claiming the election was rigged and that the current government was illegitimate and therefore wanted to overthrow it.

The result was the death of civilians in thousands in Jonglei, Upper Nile and Unity states. Not to mention that the little they have in property was completely destroyed. The government for a while tried in vain to dismiss the rebellion with bravado talks, that they will “crush the rebel within days.” It was not until the United Nations Security Council alarmed by the death of civilians in thousands, passed a resolution calling for action that is when President Salva Kiir, who had since barricaded himself into his J-One Statehouse, came out to issue amnesty to the rebels to down their arms and join their fellow citizens in preserving the precarious peace.

It is now almost four years after and those presidential amnesties are still being cheaply dished out to rebels. Mind you, it has become a lucrative business that some rebels sign them and rebel again and again so as to fast-track their promotions into the ranks of generals in the South Sudan Army, fatten their accounts and secure mansions in Juba for themselves and some of their lieutenants.

And what is the cost of that, you may wonder? Yes, at the cost of thousands of civilians deaths. Men like David Yau Yau, General Gadet Yak among others, have made their names that way. Some unlucky ones have been killed like the late Gen. George Author and Colonel Galuak Gai.

And that briefly is the legacy of a mishandled election of 2010. Therefore, you and I have a reason to be concerned if not to be afraid. We need to be concerned because our country has to conduct an election in a time when it has zero institutions required to hold a free and fair election. I repeat, a fair and free election, for that is what is required if we are to carry them out, they need to be fair and free.

The role of institutions in election and nation building
So, what are these institutions I keep saying that are mandatory not only for an election but for the nation building? First, every association of people needs a social contract and in government, it is famously called the constitution. Constitutional framework outlines what are the purposes of forming a political entity, what goods or benefits it will provide to its members.

Constitution states how the political union will operate, who will execute its visions and the power and limits of those people elected for that specific period to run the affairs of a country. Most importantly, the constitution outlines how the election must be conducted. It spells out the requirements and qualifications for those seeking various positions. Constitution creates the main institutions such as the executive, the legislature and the Judiciary.

Yes, we have the executive, national assembly and the judiciary now but they are new, weak and those who currently occupy them do not hesitate to tell you, “we are young and an infant nation.” For them that is their smartest way of dismissing any criticism when they fail. Ask them why is $ 4 billion stolen? Why are people dying in thousands? where are the schools, hospitals and roads? Their answer to all these questions is, “We are a young nation”. Really? Were they born on July 9th, 2011?

Other important institutions are the political parties through which those seeking various offices approach the electorates. Political parties are organised by their ideologies, views, beliefs and how these ideologies will guide them to solve the problems of the citizens whom they are supposed work for. Unfortunately, our current political parties are organized along tribal lines, driven by greed, personal glories and power for its own sake.

SPLM, the main political party, the party through which all the people of Sudan organised their dignified struggle for justice for 22 years. The party of independence has forgotten it roots, it is corrupt, arrogant and appears to be a party of elites (I emphasize elites here because they are the ones benefiting alone and not the whole tribe) from major tribes; Dinka, Nuer and Bari among others. Other parties such as the SPLM-DC want South Sudan without Dinka. So we are doomed, no choice and no alternatives.

SPLM politics
Let’s now turn to the SPLM politics as it approaches 2015 election. SPLM from its formation, thanks to its late leader Dr. John Garang and co-founders, was able to explain its vision that it was fighting for “freedom, Justice, equality and progress for all Sudanese.” They argued that they were fighting for a New Sudan Vision which is different from that of old Sudan that marginalised and discriminated the Sudanese people based on their race and religion.

When South Sudan separated, some of it current leaders said that the idea of New Sudan Vision doesn’t necessarily apply to a united Sudan only but can be realised within the independent South Sudan. The vision of equality, justice and progress they argued is a vision we can proudly advocate and work for its realisation in South Sudan.

But like in other one-party state, SPLM has several factions with different values, goals and personalities. SPLM as it is currently constituted is an amalgamation of convenience, a situation that came about due to the desire for unity of purpose when SPLM was negotiating the Comprehensive Peace Agreement with the National Congress Party in 2005.

So the leadership of SPLM then and with the encouragement of most of South Sudan citizens urged the political factions to come together to negotiate with one voice. These succeeded in bringing the main political actors and factions together. As a result, the factions led by Riek Machar, Lam Akol, Paulino Matip among others joined the main faction of SPLM led by Dr. John Garang. With some success, hardship, hiccups and heartbreaks thus far we have come a long way.

Then all of a sudden we found ourselves again in a situation in which our unity will be put to test once again as we approach the election in 2015. This much we know. Dr. Riek Machar, the vice President has declared his interest to contest the chairmanship of the SPLM through which he will seek the presidency of the country come the election.

The current chairman of the SPLM, President Salva Kiir Mayardit is reported to be interested to run again for the Chairmanship of the party and that of the president of South Sudan. Mr. James Wani Iga, the Speaker of the South Sudan parliament is also interested so is Secretary General of SPLM Mr. Pagan Amum among others.

All other positions are up for election such as all the seats in the national assembly, governors and state assemblies. All of them will attract men and women with ambitions who are determined to win at all cost.

Let’s now focus on the big price, the presidency, for more is at stake and the contenders are heavyweights with thousands of supporters and tribesmen filled with chauvinistic frenzy that their big man is the anointed one to overlord us, the masses. They also expect their guy once in office to loot millions of money for them and to dish out positions and development to their regions. Really!

Is this what politics has becomes? That the leaders these days are in it for ambition, glory and wealth for themselves and their tribes as opposed to being a humble calling for duty and service to all the fellow citizens no matter what regions or tribes they come from?

Latest political intrigues in Juba
So where are we? The latest development have it that President Salva Kiir has stripped his vice President Dr. Riek Machar of all additional duties given to him sometime in 2007. This move have angered Dr. Machar’s supporters and baffled the rest of citizen as they try to understand what is going on.

But those with knowledge of the internal SPLM politics opined that the president did that because the vice president declared his interest to challenge him for the chairmanship of the SPLM in the coming party convention. And the president didn’t stop there, he postponed a national peace and reconciliation conference that was initiated by the Vice President fearing the later was using it as a campaign platform that will give him additional mileage in his quest for presidency.

For Dr. Machar, some say he initiated the peace and reconciliation commission so as to redeem his image as the 1991 split of the SPLM that led to the death of civilians in thousands hang over his head like a dark cloud. Now everything seems to be ok on the surface but underneath trouble is simmering, rumbling and ready to burst like a giant volcanic eruption.

So recently, some wise men and religious leaders saw the apocalypse that I am telling you. So they went to talk to the President and the vice president to find out what was going on. Few hours later they came out like bearers of bad news who wore a nice face. They told the nation that all is ok, that president and his deputy are best of the friends and they are acting normal.

Pardon me my wise men! I beg to differ, that is politics 101 for you. You have been duped and thank you for the initiative but don’t sleep nor give up, keep up the initiative and engage not only the two gentlemen but the whole country on how to keep peace and preserve our union in the forthcoming election. Hard times call for wisdom of age which you have in abundance but is lacking in Juba as the politicians are proud to be known for juvenile politics.

Recommendations
So what shall we do, you may ask? Here is my recommendation and it may not be the only one nor is it enough. We all need to do something, be it prayers, soul searching and, yes, dialogue about how we will conduct ourselves in the forthcoming election. Here is my recommendation.

We need to organise a free and fair election beginning with how the parties nominate their candidates for various positions. No one should be blocked unlawfully through schemes other than through a lawful way. People can only be barred to stand for election if they have committed an offence that the constitution says disqualifies them from running for those positions.

Therefore, I argue that the the key part of preserving peace and strengthen our nation is to have or at least to try to have a credible, free, open and fair election.

Other things need to be done such as to have non-partisan judiciary to hear any grievances and a professional security force that will provide security to all the citizens and the candidates running for various positions. Media should play its role in educating the citizens about platforms and manifestos of the leaders and what they plan to do for us, the people.

Elections in African
But as we are still at it, let’s take some lessons from our fellow African countries and their struggle with the problem of conducting elections. I have for sometimes now wondered about why most of the modern African countries are politically unstable, have weak economies and low standards of living?

There are many reasons, such as the legacy of colonization and neo-colonization and cold war effects. I do accept the effect of those events on our continent. But I don’t believe that they are the only reasons. As a student of politics, I have come to believe that the way of transferring power from individual to another and from one group to other is the answer as to why we are backward if you will for lack of better term.

You see, some ways of seeking power in African modern states are: coup de tat, rebellion and rigging of elections to stay in power. These have brought a lot of suffering to the people of Africa as groups and tribes are locked in perpetual conflict. Kenya, our neighbour to the South is still healing from the post-election violence of 2007 and had early this year successfully pulled off an elections peaceful though the results were contested in the courts. The reason they were able to avoid the bloodshed of 2007 is because they reformed their institutions especially the courts and passed an historic and progressive constitution in 2010.

The Democratic republic of Congo for the last two decades is spiralling into destruction as factions fight for power without any ethical consideration whatsoever, where civilians have been killed, raped, tortured in millions. Uganda, Ethiopia, and Zimbabwe just to name a few are unsuccessful in holding elections.

If Africa is to realise her potential, it better first figure out how to transfer power in a peaceful way and all shall follow. And I can say with boldness, that, “Ye seek the political solution and all shall be added unto you”.

Back to South Sudan, the rebels in Jonglei are fighting for political power for it is the only way they know to get power. The fighting had disrupted the lives of civilians in Jongeli in particular and all over South Sudan in general. Due to insecurity, the civilians have moved to the nearest towns for security or stayed and be massacred like it had happened several times to many of their neighbours. And as they moved there, they have no means to provide for their basic needs such as food and shelter.

If there was security all over South Sudan and especially in the rural parts of South Sudan, our people will proudly continue to till the land and rear their livestock like they have done for the last centuries. So we need to establish a way to seek and transfer power peacefully.

And the only way I recommend is to hold a free, open and fair election. In free and fair election, losers loose with grace and winners win with humility. Therefore, losers have no reason to rebel for they were beaten fair and square. So, I recommend that in the forthcoming election in South Sudan all the political parties should choose their candidates in a free and fair process, beginning with and especially the SPLM. Then let the candidates tell the members of his or her party why she will be the best pick to represent her party in election.

Likewise, the national election need to be fair and free and all should be allow to campaign openly such that if Dr. Lam Akol of SPLM-DC or any other candidate beat SPLM candidate, I will accept him or her as a legitimate president of South Sudan as long it was a free and fair election. I don’t know if we can do that but let us try, failure to do so is not a choice if we are to maintain our union.

Our role as citizens and as voters
If you think all the groups I have mentioned have the main role to play, then think again. We the citizens have the main role to play in how the election is conducted and the way the outcome is handled. We are the ones to vote, to make an informed decision and most importantly to avoid being used by politicians to lift our hands against our fellow citizens, neighbours and fellow human beings.

God tells us, “You shall not kill,” and to treat others like we want to be treated. No one wants to be killed, have his property looted or destroyed. If we do that, my fellow citizens, if we observe peace before, during and after the election, we will look back some years to come and say to our children’s children that this was our proudest moment as South Sudanese and we will surprise the world once again, just like we did in our historic referendum. We can do that, we must do that for I do believe we are South Sudanese and we are decent people.

Agou A. Kur is a former Deputy Chairperson of The SPLM Chapter of Winnipeg city in Canada and can be reached at act_agou@hotmail.cm.
© 2013

BY: Justin Ambago Ramba, UK, MAY/10/2013, SSN;

Let’s start by answering the basic question of whether the SPLM led government in Juba – South Sudan is in any way capable of transforming this nascent country into the continent’s oasis of the much talked about democracy, whether that be under President Salva Kiir’s leadership or any one of his handful colleagues of the SPLM political Bureau for that matter?

To answer the above question one needs to look back into this quasi-political party’s history and have a good look at all those skeletons it harbors in its cupboard. One will also need to check the party’s track records on good governance and the respect of human rights.

But above all you will need to acquaint yourself with the true nature of how this monstrous organization has feasted on its own supporters while promoting a limitless impunity as it rules without the least consideration of the supreme law of the country – which is none, but its own hand made transitional constitution of the new republic of South Sudan.

After you are done with the above then and only then can you qualify to pass a fair judgement and for that matter a verdict that strongly suggests how blindfolded the entire population of South Sudan remain to be while the SPLM under Salvatore Kiir Mayardit does away with every bit of that beautiful dream they once had when independence from the “Jallaba Rule” is finally attained. Why has everything beautiful that they had dreamt for themselves and the country they so dearly sacrificed for suddenly become only for the few privileged??

There is no way that the current leadership in the office can continue to boast of being any patriotic. And even though a few are still locked up in the nostalgia of the bush war and are rightly or not claiming some patriotism, again the truth of the matter is that, long gone are those old days.

As sad and unfortunate as it is, what is practically left in front of us now is clearly a bunch of corrupted thieves and monsters who have long been intoxicated with powers to steal, kill, arrest and make to disappear with a total impunity.

Let me take you through one of this government’s showdowns and you will find it extremely nauseating to see the so-called leaders talk, and are being talked to, and being talked about.

It has been reported in the Sudan Tribune online May 1, 2013 (JUBA), that the South Sudan president Salva Kiir Mayardit said he would no longer tolerate members of his cabinet accusing the government they serve in of corruption, arbitrary arrest and human rights issues. Here I quote:

“He warned that he will no longer turn a blind eye to those in the cabinet who go outside the country to accuse his government of mismanaging the affairs of the nation while serving the same system”.[ST.]

And further to clarify his point that he is determined to spy on his ministers and all other officials, the president went on to add and I quote:

“From now on I will be tracking what cabinet ministers do and say when they leave the capital, Juba”. President Kiir stressed! [ST]

President Kiir determined to blackmail his cabinet members to the best of it left nothing to chance as he gave them [ministers and senior officials] all what he intended to say and frankly the president kept nothing behind, especially when he pointed the finger of corruption and extrajudicial killings at his cabinet members and senior officials.

This is what he said in Sudan Tribune:

“They talk as if they are not part of it [government] but if you follow them, you find they are the same people who are the ones involved in corruption. They are the ones involved in arbitrary arrest, but they come out in the day and say they are not part of it”, he said.

There you go now and you are left with only one conclusion in mind and that most arbitrary arrests in South Sudan are carried out on the instructions of more senior government officials both at federal and state levels. Some observers claim that many officials use it as an alternative method for silencing political opponents and critics of their performance. This is confirmed by Sudan Tribune as a wide belief held by the people of south Sudan.

Is Sudan Tribune rushing to conclusions here? Of course not! Otherwise how are we and any others expected to interpret the president’s words, when he squarely placed the entire blame on his cabinet members.

According to Mr. President these people [his ministers & senior officials] often commit these horrible crimes back home in south Sudan and when they are out of the country the same people go out to condemn the government for crimes that were committed by none but themselves.

Should Mr. president be telling the truth and in which case he is this time, we are then left with ministers who are not only the true culprits of the ills that befell our country, but they are also greedy hypocrites for they continue to operate together as a government or better still as brothers in loots, yet when confronted abroad with all the evidence that suggest a record breaking corruption, lack of vision and the absence of the rule of law, they become witnesses against their government which they continue to serve in.

Two things are clear here and it is that president Salva Kiir Mayardit himself is a hypocrite. Of course he has long been so. However in the case at hand the president is rightly an adamant hypocrite for the fact he without the least doubt has the full knowledge and in that case is completely aware of his senior officials’ shortcomings and their gross involvements in arbitrary arrests and surely as it implies to include all the extra judicial killings and disappearances.

Yet instead of holding these corrupt officials accountable, he [president] has for his own sake has chosen to rather use all these shortcomings as tools of blackmail against the officials with the intention to in return secure and guarantee their loyalty and silence. What a way to run a government and a country!!?

President Salva Kiir is undoubtedly disturbed by the US State Department’s country report on the nascent country of South Sudan. And he is rightly being worried and ashamed of those incidences of human rights violations, widespread rape, impunity, corruption, and the total absence of the rule of law. More unfortunate is the fact that each year’s report seems more worse than the one it preceded.

No way can the president challenge these reports as they rain year after year since he too has openly accepted and declared in an open and broadcasted speech how his officials carried out these horrendous acts and yet go out of the country to play the role of the “good guys”.

As for the cabinet ministers and the SPLM senior officials, altogether with their security dogs, it’s only one thing – your boss has exposed you, locally, regionally, and internationally. In other wards worldwide you are known as the true culprits of the mess that RSS is in now. Of course the good news for you here is that these ex-posers don’t in any way spare the president. You are all in the mess together – remember this is true before Man & God!

Let’s reason out things well, for its no good to stab anyone from behind. The bottom line is that everything in this world has a price attached to it, and when you choose one, you also choose to pay the price.

Those of us who choose to expose the mistakes of the government will continue to do so out of deeply rooted conviction to serve our country and people by the way of enlightenment and civic education.

Should anyone who chooses to accept a cabinet job under the current status quo and God forbid, then they must be prepared to relinquish being an opposition. It is said that” You can NOT eat your cake and still have it”, yet this very simple logic seems to be in shortcoming.

It is common knowledge that South Sudan is rapidly sinking under the weight of poor and visionless leaders. And although the whole thing now stings of corruptions, and impunity, yet many faint-hearted opportunists are drawn towards serving under this administration for the simple fact that they too share the same genetic traits with those in office.

We all understand that many good guys have joined the system for the money and the privileges, however occasionally they are made to regret this decision when faced by the true rotten nature of the system – hence from time to time we hear some faint voices of dissent from within the corrupt cabinet itself.

Now the core issue here is all about why suddenly the president is repeatedly growing very nervous by the day as the year 2015 gets closer? The truth is that it’s all got to do with whether he can still maintain his precious chair in the No. 1 office amid all the political chaos and economic upheavals the country wide.

Initially President Salva Kiir Mayardit intended to pacify any power ambitions within the ruling SPLM by investing heavily in one corrupted cabinet after the other. Yet he failed and is now being challenged by his own deputy in what is an open secret.

Are you in any way caught by surprise? I hope not. And to further reflect the internal power struggles, as you read these lines the ruling SPLM remains an unregistered party and with no certificate to operate per the RSS political party’s act 2012.

These are but a few of the chaos brought in by Mr. President in order to dilute any true patriotism in RSS. However in spite of this chaos there is only one way for the president to remain in power and that is through the ballot box.

First for the chairmanship of his SPLM party, then another in 2015 if he is to dream of another term in office. Any attempt by the president to do otherwise will for sure open the Pandora box and all the unwanted devils will come down on South Sudan.

Remember it was this very president who warned his senior military officers against any coup to topple his government for the fact that the international community will not recognize such a step. Having said that he better also be quick to understand that the same international community will never continue to tolerate him or his government should he not allow for a free, fair and democratic elections first in his party, then the country come 2015.

Last but not least the message to the president and the people of South Sudan at large is that whether it pleases the leadership, plus or minus its loyalties, the international community is determined to help bring about a democratic transformation in South Sudan. In other words it’s all about South Sudan and never about Salva Kiir Mayardit or anyone within his in circles or even the organization..

My fellow compatriots! It’s for the sake of a better South Sudan, that we must endeavor very hard to see many more ministers and senior officials speak out and loud against corruption, impunity and the widespread disrespect of the rule of law.

Salvatore Kiir Mayardit can choose to dismiss officials who criticize is corrupted leadership style, but that will only make them appeal more to the electorates come 2015, than being enslaved within a rotten and an ailing system.

Yet the true salvation lies beyond party politics and as for now the future of the worn out SPLM party and its crooked leadership are anybody’s guess.

Author: Justin Ambago Ramba. He can be reached at: ambagoramba@hotmail.co.uk.

BY: ELHAG PAUL, South Sudan, MAY/02/2013, SSN;

It is now one and half year since Sule’s indefinite incarceration.

Justice Peter Sule’s only mistake was to misunderstand and mis-assess his people’s response to the status quo. He perfectly understood their sufferings and pain. He rose up for them when they are not prepared to accept the truth of the time. They did not want to be themselves. They did not want dignity. They lost sight of the truth and reality of the situation under falsity of being civilised and peaceful. They falsely claim to be the beacon of unity in a country that is driven by ruthless unprincipled gangs of people. A country that they sacrificed greatly for and now after independence deprives them of the basic necessities of life.

His people pride themselves in being educated and rational. This thinking has fragmented them into individuals rendering them weak. Each one is isolated from the other making them good targets of those who intended to prey on them. The security that comes from being in a cohesive group or community has been broken and destroyed and with it the might of once a well organised community.

A community that in the 1970s and 1980s fought its corner without flinching and it won what it wanted. It vindicated the saying that ‘where there is a will, there is a way.’ That will has been broken and destroyed by its enemies during the long years of the liberation war.

A war in which they themselves fought hard and sacrificed enormously but yet ended up being reduced to underdogs of those who acted in ‘group think.’ Those who acted brutally towards them. Those who legitimised their group think with violence on them while condemning any form of organisation in them. This planned and executed the fragmentation of Equatoria as a whole by its ill wishers has enfeebled its people.

So today, anyone trying to act for its good is brought down and condemned by none other than Equatorians themselves. Sule’s case is a classic example of oppressed people that Frantz Fanon’s book “The Wretched of the Earth” talks about.

Kokora in the late 1970s and early 1980s was achieved because Equatoria was solidly held together by a glue of consciousness in relation to its interest and security. It protected each and every Equatorian from abuse. That glue of consciousness which emanated from a ‘group think’ ensured that Equatoria was mighty though it had its own internal weakness but externally it projected might which gave it its respect.

In April 2011 a semblance of that might flashed in Juba during the Equatoria conference but it died out as quickly as it flickered like a dying asteroid. Perhaps it was this that misled Sule into thinking that at long last Equatorians are ready to look after themselves. Politics is brutal. No one can look after your interest if you don’t look after it personally.

Appeasement of the powers that be and sycophancy never pays but only strengthens the abusers and oppressors. In the process, the abusers stay long in power abusing you and the masses.

Violence breeds violence. We have seen this during the war, especially when SPLM/A split up in early 1990s. We now see it in Lakes state, Unity state, Upper Nile state, Jonglei state and so on. Tit for tat between communities that once lived peacefully have fallen prey to manipulation by opportunistic politicians. South Sudanese have experienced a lot of this violence for a long time and there is need to put a stop to it.

How do we put a stop to it? Ending violence may not be easy but there are some steps that each and every one of us should take. This includes our political leaders. Foremost is the need for a truth and reconciliation commission to examine all the heinous crimes that took place during the two decades of liberation. The purpose of this exercise would be as in South Africa in mid 1990s not to seek revenge but for both culprits and victims or relatives of deceased victims to exchange the painful information thereby leading to forgiveness and healing. That is to restore respect for humanity. We must also accept that the culprits were dehumanised and so we do not seek vengeance but their rehabilitation.

Some people reading this piece may be surprised by my call for truth and reconciliation commission, especially given the fact that the government of South Sudan has already taken initiative by organising one. However, I do not believe that the government initiative on healing will be effective simply because the whole process is an exercise of showing off, although I hope I am proved wrong.

There is no will to conduct a real truth and reconciliation process in South Sudan now because the rulers are the real culprits who must be held to account. As they are in power they will frame the terms of reference for the healing programme to deal with communities excluding their own heinous crimes. It will be a charade like the Anti-Corruption Commission which until now has not prosecuted a single person in a country awash with corrupt people robbing the government in broad daylight.

The real healing or truth and reconciliation commission will have to be set up in future by a non-SPLM administration so that the current criminals in power can be dragged to answer for their part in setting one tribe against the other; a son against father, a daughter against mother and so on and so forth; in the process dehumanising the entire society.

The most surprising thing is that even as the government tries to promote healing, it grants amnesty to all the rebels from the ruling ethnic groups and preclude people like Justice Peter Sule who is held indefinitely on tramped up charges. In July last year Gen. Paul Mach and company attempted to overthrow the government of South Sudan violently. Instead of holding this group to account, all the members were set free and rewarded with positions in the government within a week. Same with the police chief alleged by the president himself to have murdered engineer John Luis over his plot of land.

Do you see the arbitrary rule of the president and his ruling party the SPLM? One rule for the ethnic ruling group and another for the others. How can healing be achieved with such ongoing discriminatory and oppressive practices fueled by tribalism?

The ideal thing is for the government to behave in a uniform manner toward all who allegedly committed the same crimes with the understanding that we the people of South Sudan do not want more violence. The outcome of trials should not be to exact harsh penalties but to seek to reform or to learn from them as in the cases of Equatorial Guinea and Apartheid South Africa with Simon Mann and Nelson Mandela respectively. By doing this, South Sudan will not only become civilised, it will discourage the culture of violence from state and individuals alike.

There are those like Ngor Tong who through their articles in 2011 and early 2012 are calling for violent revenge by the state. This is not only irresponsible but naïve lacking knowledge of the complexity of punishment and management of society. Today, the Europeans have learnt that capital punishment does not pay and it does not serve any purpose other than to destroy lives of innocent people (executioners) psychologically. South Africa led by foresighted leaders like Mandela has abolished capital punishment. South Sudan should and must seek this path. We benefit nothing by making fellow countrymen (executioners) killers of fellow human beings.

SPLM did annoy people by its April 2010 behaviour during the general election. This generated mixed feelings in the population and sparked numerous rebellions such as that of late George Athor. That general election will remain a black mark in our conscience and history and it will continue to generate controversy. It is the turning point on the aspiration of democracy in our country.

The latest episode is David Yau Yau’s rebellion and who knows what awaits us in the future. The arrogance of SPLM will fragment our country and also fragment SPLM itself. It will be an implosion that consumes all of us before we rise again. No point burying our heads in the sand.

Justice Peter Sule should have swallowed the bitter pill. But if someone was brought up with dignity, it would be difficult to stomach such discourtesy. The question that demands answer is: why did president Kiir deliberately humiliate Sule in his residence on 10th July 2011 in front of everybody present on that day? Was it politically intended to despise Equatoria as a whole, or was it a personal issue, or was it a harboured grudge related to the unfortunate incident of 26 March 1993 in Kongor where the late honourable statesman Joseph Oduho lost his life and Sule narrowly escaped?

If this was meant to despise Equatorians it is understandable given the very sad relationship between the Jieng and Equatorians. During the war president Kiir openly insulted Equatorian people in Yei as “cowards.” Since then his tribes mates have used the term freely to disparage and intentionally injure the feelings of Equatorians.

But if the humiliation was meant as a personal insult, why should a president behave in such an appalling manner that reduces his stature? After all, Sule and the other parties except USSP in 2006 unanimously pledged their support to the president. The communiqué of that gathering stands out as evidence to prove that Sule as a person did not hold any ill feelings towards the president.

I personally was not impressed with the president’s backward manner of behaviour on 10th July 2011, a day after declaration of independence. The president therefore has to take responsibility for pushing Sule to his limits. There was no reason at all for the president to behave towards Sule in the way he did. After all Sule was his guest and Sule was in his residence.

In African traditions guests are respected no matter what, especially when they are in your house. Courtesy demanded the president to show civility, diplomacy and respect. The president did not. His behaviour was atrocious. His behaviour towards Sule was not only condescending, but belittling and provocative.

Put yourself in Sule’s shoes and imagine yourself being treated in this way. What would you do? How would you feel? Those people near Sule (whose names I will not name now for obvious reasons) could testify to this. It was obvious that this was a nasty experience for Sule.

If the discourtesy towards Sule was in relation to the events of 26th March 1993, then it opens up a whole can of worms. The president in the Rumbek meeting of November 2004 accused late Dr John Garang of being a dangerous person who did not forget or forgive. Could he possess a similar character and therefore was projecting his own part of character to late Dr Garang? Whether he is or not, as the president he is expected to be above all past grudges.

If I had any right to criticise Sule it would be that he underestimated the 28 years of SPLM pacification of South Sudanese, especially Equatorians. The ethnically dominated leadership of SPLM hammered the idea that they are the liberators into the minds of the young and the average South Sudanese. They installed themselves in the place of the Arabs.

Most of the South Sudanese born after 1980 have no real picture of the dynamics of South Sudanese social fabric. This generation without putting any blame on them have been indoctrinated with Garangism to their own detriment. This can be seen from the arguments they expound in support of this failed and incompetent organisation called SPLM.

This generation is incapable of seeing that politics is about interest and how that interest is framed. It is either framed for one group as in the case of SPLM or for the society as a whole in the case of ANC of South Africa. In South Sudan, the SPLM framed the political interest of the country in favour of the ruling ethnic group.

This interest is protected by: 1) constant disarmament of all the other tribes. 2) Control of all the security organs in the country. 3) control of the legislative assembly. 4) control of judiciary. 5) Enriching members of the ruling ethnic group by way of massive corruption in order to control the economy. 6. Denial and projection of tribalism to the victims of the rulers. 7) Abuse of mass media.

If you remember the ruling Arabs in the Sudan behaved exactly like the SPLM now. They used to blame any political protest from the non Arabs as racist act. Take for example the failed coup of Hassan Hussein of 1976. The ruling class in the Sudan did not waste any time. They rallied the Arabs and used the media to label the coup as racist.

In South Sudan now, anybody from the rest of the oppressed ethnic groups opposing the government is quickly labelled by the rulers as tribalist. As far as the ruling class is concerned their own pernicious tribalism is not an issue but it is the tribalism of the others that is destructive to the country.

What they fail to see is that for tribalism to be effectively practised, essentially one must have power. It is they who possess power currently in the country and this is the very reason they dominate every sphere of the government. How credible is it then that the ruling ethnic group blames the powerless oppressed ‘other’ for tribalism in the country?

Rebellion for the sake of rebellion obviously is neither desirable nor acceptable. For it causes unnecessary destruction, loss of life and unquantifiable sufferings. This said, in some instances rebellion is not only desirable but becomes an evil necessity to be undertaken. Take for example, when the Sudan became independent in 1956, we the Southerners in that country had no other option but to rebel and take up arms against the unjust tyrannical regime in Khartoum.

Our current president joined that rebellion and when the Addis Ababa agreement was signed in 1972 he returned as sergeant. Again hurt by the behaviour of the Arabs in 1983, he went to the bush. For most of his life, the president has been a serial rebel for the just cause of the South Sudanese people. The Arabs considered him an outlaw and we considered him a nationalist freedom fighter. So are most of the current leaders of South Sudan. The line between a nationalist and a rebel traitor is thin and it depends on whose side one is and who has the power to effectively label.

With the above I consciously bring my reflection to an end for now and let me say Sule’s unjust incarceration, whether people like it or not, is a statement by the ruling ethnic group to all the other tribes of South Sudan, especially Equatorians that they have the power and they can do as they please.

If you have not yet waken up and noted that those who call others as cowards are the ‘New Arabs’ on the block, then think again. Sule’s incarceration is a message, loud and clear, that if you the ‘other’ do not worship those who consider themselves ‘Born to rule’ by singing Oyee!. Oyee! ………you are in for further pacification. Therefore, it is a challenge to South Sudanese fair minded people and so the ball now rests in the court of the people to question why Sule is singled out to remain in Gulag.

[The truth hurts but it is also liberating]

Elhag Paul
elhagpaul@aol.com

BY: JUMA MABOR MARIAL, JUBA, APR/24/2013, SSN;

I may be called the Journalist, the activist, the political rival and the most wanted person in my attempts to respond to the untenable utterances against the media and other citizens of Lakes state by the Deputy Governor over the weekend, but am also convinced in my own right that if I don’t condemn these reckless statements from our leaders, then who would do that?

Before I could release my discontentment, I wish to refer the readers to an article published on ‘Sudan tribune’ on April 23, 2013 (RUMBEK) which read as, “Those who are writing negatively about this state government will be crucified like Jesus Christ if we capture them,” Lakes state’s Deputy Governor, Mabor Achol Kuer, said on Sunday.

It is not surprising to read such statements from Mabor Achol because the man has been known for his controversial statements in his political life. Previously during his tenure as a commissioner in one of the counties in Greater Yirol, he was quoted as saying, “the Agaar’s cattle do not have marks in their foreheads such that they could be easily identified with their herders.’

He was then responding to the quest by the Agaar community leaders asking the leadership to recover the cows stolen from the later. This statement has caused him several confrontations and some of us had thought he would be more careful the next time he releases any statement in relation to public issues.

I personally respect the Deputy Governor and his policies especially in the fight against corruption and nepotism in the state institutions. He has since his appointment stood out to be a very objective politician because at some point he would disagree with his bosses on principles of governance and this has all along enabled him built a stable political platform between him and the public.

We had hoped he would continue to do the same with regards to safeguarding the bill of rights including but not limited to the freedom of speech, expression, association, political opinion, religion because he is now quoting the Bible etc…

It is also too difficult to blame him for releasing this statement because he has to please his boss at some point considering that he has just been missed by a whisper as the recent government reshuffle left him seated but instead added to his docket the highest and prestigious ministry of education.

He therefore has all the right to defend the government but in this particular case, he has over sped by quoting the crucifixion of Jesus Christ. The Christian doctrines to this incident are that the death of Jesus has been rapidly condemned in the strongest terms possible and that the Christians around the globe rightfully believed that Jesus was innocent and his ultimate death was not the best decision made by his executors.

Therefore, if the Deputy Governor could go back to his archives and read on the teachings, the crucifixion, the resurrection and the whole history about Jesus and his crucifixion, he would only end up quoting the bible that, ‘Father, forgive them for they do not know what they are doing.’

So, if the Deputy Governor crucifies these journalists and activists when and if they capture them, then the victims would simply say, ‘God, forgive this government for it does not know what the purpose for the bill of rights is,’ in the Transitional Constitution.

Negative criticisms as he intends to portray and the Crucifixion in regard to Jesus Christ have diverse connotations and the Deputy Governor should have had the wisdom to select his statements very carefully.

Nevertheless, the question of crucifying people of south Sudan by a certain level of government is an element of insecurity and it is unfortunate that the government that is entrusted with protecting the lives of the citizens is threatening them with crucifixion.

The changes in Lakes state of removing the duly elected governor were prompted by rampant insecurity and the president in his own wisdom selected General Matur Chut Dhuol to go and restore sanity in that state. This also means that insecurity cannot only be about sectional fights, cattle rustling, crimes and street gangs but it may also be caused by reckless statements like this particular one by the Deputy Governor.

Insecurity does not only mean seeing dead corps but also means when there are intentions of intimidating, threatening, scaring someone away from living in their rightful homes. The Deputy Governor seemed to have not considered the negative repercussions his statement entails in regard to the general policies of his government and security situation of lakes state in particular.

What do I advise?

Personally, I still want Mabor Achol Kuer to remain relevant in the political landscape of Lakes State because together with General Matur Chut Dhuol as his boss, we can be rest assured of a corruption free Lakes State and perhaps the insecurity will with time subside if the stringent measures that the caretaker governor introduced are critically followed.

However, I want the Deputy Governor to observe the following;

1. Refrain from intimidating the citizens from exercising their constitutional rights
2. Apologize to the people of lakes state for threatening them with crucifixion
3. Repent to Jesus and his Father for quoting the Holy Book in favor of his political rhetoric
4. Continue fighting his good war on corruption.
5. Never give up his principles in exchange for political appointments.

If the Deputy Governor takes into account some of these unsolicited advices from me, his citizen, I think he will have a brighter political destiny.

Juma Mabor Marial is a lawyer based in Juba.

Reachable at hussenjuma@hotmail.com

BY: Both Nguot, SOUTH SUDAN, APR/18/2013, SSN;

South Sudanese president, Salva Kiir, on Monday issued a decree withdrawing executive powers that were delegated to his vice-president Dr Riek Machar Teny Dhurgon, according to a broadcast by the state-run South Sudan Television. The order did not cite or state any reason for the move and no official statement has been released. It also did not specify to the public which powers he delegated to the Vice President and had to be withdrawn or the difference between such powers he has with the powers stipulated in the constitution and that he wanted Machar to continue to exercise.

Kiir now restricted Machar to the powers “stipulated in the article 105” of the transitional constitution. When we read the constitution and compare the presidential degree of 105 issued on Tuesday by the president, we will find that president Kiir’s degree has no connection with the constitution because article 105 of Transitional constitution is talking about the appointment and the removable of vice president as we quote below.

Appointment and Removal of the Vice President:
105. (1) The Vice President shall be appointed by the President subject to approval by a two-thirds majority of all members of the National Legislative Assembly.
(2) The Vice President may be removed by the President or by a decision passed by two-thirds majority of all members of the National Legislative Assembly on a vote of no confidence.
(3) If the post of the Vice President falls vacant for any reason, the President shall appoint a replacement.
(4) The Vice President shall fulfill the conditions of eligibility for the office of the President as prescribed by this Constitution.
(5) To assume office, the Vice President shall take, before the President, the same oath taken by the President as prescribed by this Constitution.

When we look into the article 105 above of the Transitional constitution of the Republic of South Sudan, we will find that the president has just removed the vice president as according to the constitution, maybe it was a mistake from SSTV staffs who made the confusion to the public because in article 105, it is the appointment and the removable of vice president by the president himself.

So we don’t see any executive powers under this article, the executive powers are only found under article 106 of the Transitional constitution of Republic of South Sudan as mentioned below:

Functions of the Vice President
106. The Vice President shall perform the following functions: 36
(a) act for the President in his or her absence from the country;
(b) be a member of the Council of Ministers;
(c) be a member of the Security Council; and
(d) perform any other function or duty that may be assigned to him or her by the President.

Now what are the executive powers that the president has removed from the vice president? Does he (Kiir) mean the functions of the vice president which are under article 106 of the Transitional Constitution as mentioned above or the president’s degree mean the article 105 of Transitional Constitution?

As we all read the constitution, the president would have removed the vice president so as to match his presidential degree 105 with his degree which stipulate the appointment and removable of the vice president. And if the president means the article 106 of the Transitional Constitution which stipulates the functions and the duties of the vice president, Why was it pronounced as article 105 which is the appointment and removable of the vice president?

South Sudan Minister of information, Barnaba Marial Benjamin, at press conference organised specifically to make clarifications on the order, called for calm and cautious remarks, saying constitutional powers of the vice president have not been removed.

“Riek Machar is still a vice president with all constitutional powers. General Salva Kiir Mayardit is a still a president with all his constitutional powers. They are all in office. What the president had done is that he had withdrawn powers he had previously delegated to the vice president. It is like you asking me to do some work for you when you are preoccupied. This is exactly what had happened and it should be understood in this context,” Marial said Tuesday.

Now what are these executive and constitutional powers that the information minister mean that the president had withdrawn from the vice president rather than the functions of the vice president under article 106 which give the vice president some powers to: act for the president in his/her absence, to be a member of council of ministers, be a member of securities council and to perform any others function or duties that may be assigned to him or her by the president?

What I know in this context is that, in section (d) under article 106 which allowed the vice president to perform any other functions or duties that may be assigned to him or her by the president. It is the only section (d) of 106 which relate to president Kiir’s degree.

But, the question is, is it this section (d) under article 106 that the president had withdrawn from the vice president or the whole function of the vice president? And if these are the executive powers that H.E the president meant but they are not under article 105, because under this article it’s only the appointment and removable of the vice president.

If that could be the case, does the president have a right to amend any article in the Transitional Constitutions without taking it to the parliament for debate? Or just because he has some political differences with his deputy that could allow him to do so?

And if it happened that some of the executives powers have been removed or he has removed the vice president because of political differences between them and later appointed a new vice president, will he (Kiir) later return those powers back to the new vice president or the new vice president will continue without executive powers?

Another question is, if those executive powers were given to vice president by the president himself as cooperation between him and his deputy in their office, does it need a presidential degree to withdrawn them?

The president was supposed to withdraw those powers as he had delegated to the vice deputy secretly without using presidential degree as he gave them last time to his deputy without degree since those powers are not in the Transitional constitution.

On the issue of Peace and Reconciliation process, Marial also denied that there were any political differences between the president and his deputy over the organization and conduct of a peace and reconciliation conference scheduled for June, having only recently been postponed from April.

If that could be the case, as Marial says, why the president allowed the process of Peace and Reconciliation to get started if he (Kiir) knew that he was not interested in reconciling the people of south Sudan?

I think Dr Marial doesn’t want to tell the fact or they just wants to confuse the public otherwise they are ignorant and I believe president Kiir up to now might not have given us full knowledge about his presidential degree.

Dr Marial has also added that Machar had been due to head the conference but was removed from this position by Kiir on Monday. Government sources have told Sudan Tribune that the postponement was due to political differences over the agenda and the timing of the process.

However Marial, the government’s official spokesperson did not give any reason for the decision as to why Kiir had abruptly suspended the process and Machar’s role in it.

“Adding that there is no difference that I know between the vice president and the president, the two leaders have been closely working together on all issues of national value,” Marial explained.

On the other hand, the speaker of South Sudan’s National Legislative Assembly, James Wani Igga, in his speech on Tuesday that the president “did not touch” the constitutional powers assigned to the vice president and did not dismiss him. The head of state had only withdrawn powers he had previously delegated to his deputy to help perform other important tasks he could not attend, the senior SPLM official said.

“Adding that he read the decree and looked at the transitional constitution and found that the president did not touch any constitutional powers assigned to the vice president. He [Kiir] had only withdrawn powers he had in the past delegated to his deputy. So let our people understand that the vice president is a still a vice president with all his constitutional powers”, Igga told reporters.

Igga called for South Sudanese to be calm and read the decree to fully understand the meaning of the announcement.

So I might agree with the speaker on the issue of the constitution as he says the president had not touch the constitutional powers assigned to vice president by the constitution, adding that he only had withdrawn powers he had previously delegated to his deputy.

But why the president refers us to article 105 which is only the appointment and removable of vice president?

In fact, the presidential decree issued on Monday was meaningless and out of vacuum since there is no clear information about the degree.

The fact is about the on-going political bickering and leadership shadow boxing within the political bureau and the SPLM party for the upcoming SPLM National convention as well as 2015 presidential candidate for presidency.

In conclusion, Kiir’s tribe-mate advisers will lead him to hell, why? Because president Kiir has only put his tribe mates as his advisors around him, so they took the national issues as their properties and that is why they make things according to their will.

I wish to offer my free legal advice to the president and his advisors that, next time when you want to embarrass someone, do it in your offices without giving the public an uneasy time, because, believe me you, I couldn’t sleep that night when this news was read out and I think most of you did not.

The president and his advisors had created an unnecessary political tension and this is something they should have handled quietly and neatly.

From now on, you must know that ‘delegated powers’ are freely and willingly given by any particular boss and they are or can be withdrawn at will, so there was no need to inform us about it.

However, the point of giving the strong message to Dr. Riek being the underlying factor is recognized but again, use other mechanisms next time, Mr. President!!!!

BY: JUMA MABOR MARIAL, JUBA, APR/10/2013, SSN;

A year down the road, the government and people of south Sudan suffered unprecedented economic meltdown as a result of its government decision to halt oil production through the northern neighbor on allegations that the north unapologetically stole the southern oil. This consequently led to the declaration of austerity measures which in subsequent months turned into an imperative statement in the transactions of any business in south Sudan.

After intensive negotiations between Khartoum and Juba midwifed by the African Union High Implementation Panel (AUHIP), a series of issues were agreed upon including the resumption and/or flow of southern oil through the northern facility.

This was stipulated very well under the commonly referred to as ‘the co-operation agreement deal,’ and although both the northerners and southerners felt that this was an indication of economic bail out mechanism, there was still no political will to implement this set of agreements from both sides of the political divide with Khartoum playing the big boy arrogant role in the game.

However, with mounting pressure from the international community and practical realization by both sides that their economies were heading to the dogs, a round table of talks was initiated and an implementation modality in the name of ‘implementation matrix’ was reached and this proposed effective yet neutral mechanisms under which both sides shall feel like they have been given a favor but altogether, the object was to ensure that the contentious issues between the parties are resolved as well as reviving their nearly collapsed economies.

This does not mean there were no painful concessions made and especially southern Sudan was at the losing end as some of its negotiators were more or less very incompetent.

Now, with the resumption of oil production on its third or fourth day, there is urgent need to caution both the people and government of south Sudan about the implications of this promising economic revival out of the oil revenues.

One would only rekindled this time with the 2004 leading to the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement when the people of Southern Sudan had the Donors Conference in Oslo where a substantial amount of money was given to people of south Sudan for developmental activities, this trend continued with the 50% oil revenue which was appropriated to the then defunct government of southern Sudan on wealth sharing provision.

With all these funds availed to the southerners hands, it was anxiety, excitement and uncontrollable spending that categorized the daily business as individuals got into the government coffers with the intention of enriching themselves and undermining the delivery of essential services to the people.

This fact resulted into much corruption-related scandals with the primary and recent examples being the Dura and 75 individuals involved in the 4 billion dollar scams.

Such operations thus denied the common citizens access to standard healthcare facilities, education, clean drinking water, road infrastructural development among others whilst some few people in the government enriched themselves at the expenses of the above mentioned vulnerable groups.

As a result of these indifferences, the gap between the poor and the rich kept on widening and the mistrust reached it optimum as most of the southerners feel that the government has forgotten the reason for liberating this country from the predecessor state. Kiir himself have qualified these views in his letter to the alleged 75 corrupt officials that ‘it seems we have forgotten why we took up arms and liberated this country.’

These sentiments notwithstanding, the president has long remained threatened by his political rivals and this has prevented him from reshuffling his government for the fear of political risk that he might be taking and other related political calculations.

The public remains hanged on the lip services and political slogan of ‘zero tolerance to corruption’ as repeatedly pronounced by the president.

With all these ups and downs, it is now an opportune time for president Kiir to ensure that, as the nation is blessed to have the donors conference in the United States a week away which would give the country some little money for development and the resumption of oil production through the north simultaneously, it is obvious that there is going to be enough money for development and other services in the next two to three months.

Therefore, he needs now to sack out the corrupt officials in his government such that a new crop of leaders can come in to supervise the provision of basic services to the south Sudanese people.

This can only be realized if the president sacked some if not all of the previously mentioned 75 corrupt officials, employed technocrats and got rid of the heavy cabinet that has always only received salary and gave nothing in return.

The president should reshuffle the cabinet before the first money from the oil is received by his government from the world market.

This opinion is not only shared by me and a couple other south Sudanese citizens but it is even most favored by the international partners and civil society organizations who have had such observations as is reflected by Dana Wilkins, a Global Witness campaigner who stressed that, “the resumption of oil production, if managed well, could provide desperately needed development and basic services for South Sudanese citizens.”

Furthermore, she added that, “the oil legislation specifically includes the transparency and accountability mechanisms necessary to help make that happen and now is the time for the government to demonstrate its commitment to openness and public scrutiny.”

These sentiments are the true expectations of the citizens of this nascent state and the international partners as the oil money gets to south Sudan.

The southern Sudanese are not ready to ever again experience the yester-years dealings where the money went into elite’s pockets and left the common person with nothing but complaints and continued suffering.

In conclusion, the president must now move very swiftly to restore hopes in the southern Sudanese citizens by getting rid of most if not all of the current ministers and bring in a lean but technocratic government that will stir the economic development of this country to the next level.

There would be no excuse whatsoever to retain these old guards in the government because they have not been able to convince the populace of this republic that they are equal to the task.

Kiir must now think about the nation first and his political and individual interests later. He should not be caught up by threats of disintegration in the SPLM and dissidents from the government.

He is the only person who can move this country forward and if he remains indecisive like he is doing now, then he is unknowingly throwing this great country into the category of failed states. The successes and failures of this state squarely lies in his hands.

It is my hope that the recent developments in the oil sector will restore hopes that south Sudan is indeed an independent state that is moving forward and it is certainly the country that we overwhelmingly voted for in the referendum to be a sovereign state where we shall always remain proud and respected.

Juma Mabor Marial lives in Juba and is reachable at: hussenjuma@hotmail.com

BY: Mapuor Malual Manguen, JUBA, RSS, APR/06/2013, SSN;

In modern Africa, revolutionary parties have managed to stay on to power for decades. This followed transition from colonial government to the self-rule governance of native Africa leaders who ascended to power through liberation or counter-liberation struggles. Tanzania’s Cham Cha Maphenduzzi (CCM), South Africa’s Africa National Congress (ANC), Uganda’s National Resistance Movement (NRM), and the Kenya Africa National Union (KANU) etc… are a few liberation parties that managed to cling on to power for decades as post-colonial or counter-liberation regimes.

The Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), which started its movement as revolutionary in 1980s, became a liberation and independence party for the Republic of South Sudan. Ever since 2011, it remains politically pervasive and as the ruling party in the nascent state.

However, can it cling to power for long as other liberation and revolutionary parties did in Africa? Apparently, the SPLM chances of slipping into the dustbin of political oblivion are quite high.

SPLM, unlike other revolutionary parties mentioned above, faces a serious ideological problem. As I mentioned in the introduction above, the party started with a revolutionary manifesto that was mainly to unseat the traditional oppressive government systems in Sudan, which marginalized the peripheries and changed power into the hands of Arab Islamists and political elite since independence in 1956.

SPLM wanted to change this trend by establishing democratic, free secular Sudanese society where people would be equal irrespective of religion, location, tribe and culture. But it failed to achieve this comprehensive vision.

Nevertheless, the SPLM achieved one of its main objectives, the self determination for the people of Southern Sudan that was realized on July 9, 2011. This resulted into the existence of SPLM in the two countries: SPLM-North in Sudan and SPLM of South Sudan.

Ever since then, it is not clear now which direction the SPLM ruling party in South Sudan is following. Moreover, there is no clear vision and manifesto in which SPLM should adhere to in its day-to-day activities as a ruling party.

The second challenge for SPLM is the infighting between its luminaries. There is a silent power struggle in the party pitting the chairperson and President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir Mayardit with his deputies, vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny and the National Assembly Speaker, Mr. James Wani Igga; SPLM Secretary General Pagan Amum Okiech and Madam Rebecca Nyandeng de Mabior, the widow of late hero and founder of SPLM.

This power struggle is not new in SPLM; it caused the breakaway and subsequent formation of SPLM-DC in 2009 by former Sudan Foreign Minister, Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin.

Because of this infighting, the ordinary members of SPLM seem to give their loyalty not to the party but to their individual heavy weights in the top brass. With the party’s national convention slated for next May 2013, the SPLM faces a daunting task of addressing this power struggle through fair, healthy and democratic manner that the party claims to have subscribed to.

If otherwise, the party might yet again break up into more micro-parties.

Thirdly, the growing ethnic division in the country is another problem. Despite the fact that all communities and regions mirror themselves in the top brass of the party, some sections still see the SPLM as a Dinka dominated party.

In fact, there are some tribal affiliated parties in this country, which sugarcoated themselves with national agenda. When such parties mushroom in the country, they are likely to marshal a strong coalition that would wrest power from the SPLM. The case study of such politics is the Republic of Kenya where coalition of over twenty political parties unseated the independence party, KANU, which ruled the country with iron fist for about forty years.

The post independence woes facing the government are likely to affect the SPLM party too. Since it is the ruling party, people of South Sudan do point their finger on SPLM for failing to deliver on some of key governance issues.

The SPLM run-government has failed to rein in some of its corrupt officials serving in the government; there is a runaway tit for tat cattle rustlings going on between pastoralist communities in the country; and lack of infrastructure development in the war affected young nation. All this could be blame on SPLM and its led-government.

Generally, the upcoming elections in 2015 will be a referendum for the SPLM party.

However, the SPLM still holds considerable opportunity to rebrand its agenda that South Sudanese can easily embrace. The Achievements that this party has delivered to people of this country can never be underestimated either. Among them is the secession of South Sudan, the SPLM firm stand on the protection of South Sudan’s sovereignty which neighboring Sudan would always want to usurp power away in an arrogant manner and of course, the delivery of some basic services to citizens.

But, since it always a nature of human beings to ignore yesterday’s in favor of today’s, the SPLM should not sit back hoping that it enjoys the liberation legacy just like other African movements and that it would push its agenda easily anytime.

This would be political naivety if not the gravest mistake in the dot.com world we enjoy today.

The author is journalist based in Juba. He can be reached at mapuormalual@yahoo.com