Job Kiir Garang, Canada.
Oct 4, 2014(Nyamilepedia) — The political discourse in South Sudan bugs me a lot. For once, there is no political leader or maybe they are in the hidings somewhere, either in our minds or in reality. Albeit, being a young country, i presume that we should be doing better than we are right now.
If anything, it is a country richer than any other within that region. We have the oil and so many other untapped resources yet to be explored or discovered. But instead of taking advantage of what we have and could potentially excel with it, we settle with tribal politics that, in my opinion, would be abhorred by any thoughtful being. President Kiir Mayardit has and will always fail every Southerner.
It is such a pity that a visionary leader vanishes in the form and shape of Dr. John Garang only to have the country inherited by a numb-nut like Kiir. I am fed up about cultural and tribal divisions and this is pretty much exemplified by our current leader; a president who thinks that everything that glitters belongs to great Bar-el-gazal or sometimes, dinka. This is a president who does not adhere to peace or any other agreements as depicted in the recent Addis Ababa peace talks. He could only sign the peace deal in Juba after he was pressurized by these phony external organizations in South Sudan; the likes of IGAD and the UN. Nothing has changed after all. The war is continuing. Anyway, I am going to narrow down my argument here.
My biggest concern is not just about leadership. It is deep-rooted in this mindset of identity that breeds nothing but division. Ethnic identity is of great significance. I am sure everyone would and should be proud to know his or her own background. However, when this identity is politicized and used as a leverage to benefit one’s own tribe in a way, then it is not acceptable at all. There is even a greater confusion among the dinka community to a point that they have no identity at all. Where does this great “tribe” come from? With that in mind, here are my pointers:
- Division: the word great is used to cover up greed. Only when the word great has died shall there be peace in our domains. Appreciate originality (it carries a lot of weight). This only dies if we are all marred in this idea of great “whatever”…..greater nuer, greater bar-el-gazal and greater equatoria, greater bor etc. It creates loopholes where politicians thrive by consuming the budgets belonging to constituencies. Our elected MPs end up getting confused in this idea of “great nonsense” to a point he or she does not represent their people and what they were elected for. Take care of your own constituencies and get rid of all this greatness craziness.
- Loss of cultural values and their significance: For example: in my own constituency, there are some individuals who are aspiring to translate our own ‘diet ke tip ke TWI to be akin to dergel rhythmically. Some people want to get rid of our own cultural values by criminally aspire to be a member of greater Bor. What happened to the original statuses anyway that somehow they have to be “great?” You know where u belong and that should be it. In 2013, majority of TWI became described as “Nuer ke Majak Agoot or Nuer ke Nyandeng” but a u-turn from some of the leaders within our own constituency appeared to make us fall victim of this great tribal divide. This has taught me a very good lesson and in no way should anyone be ignored or overlooked within our community. We are all just one and never should we create all these lines of separation.
- Message to Akol Aguek Ngong. Congrats on your election as the leader of Bor county. We have shared borders for centuries and it is self evident that we have never had any social attrition until a point in our history when social contracts became politicized. Let’s accept our own background as genuine and lets also cooperatively work together to bring towns and municipalities back to the people. I am a proud son of Twic East County and that does not mean I do not recognize my counterparts in other counties. There should be no such thing as great bor, great nuer or great equatoria or even GPA. These are curvatures that split the very fabric of our country.
- World vision, the UN: if only we can contribute the little we have to help our own people back home, I am pretty sure we would not have any need for these phony organization who use the images of our own children to raise money which surprise, surprise, is used to purchase weapons which in turn is sent to our homeland and used by us to murder one another. In 2014, the UNMISS had guns in what was considered to be aids to the locals in Nasir. We are blinded, big time, to even think that their presence in our homeland is of any value. Only our current government can entertain them or at least explain the significance of their presence. I am Fed up.
- About two months ago, I had a wonderful trip to Syracuse and I had a few things to learn: our hatred is exaggerated. I would love to have these issues that tend to divide and pull us apart addressed collectively. A wrestling took place in Boston, Massachusetts and at the same time there was a Twi East fundraising in NY with the aim of raising money to rebuild the hospital in Panyagoor. It was appalling that there was no communication among these two groups and the divide is nothing but this ‘great’ nonsense. We can only be greater if we share our values as people: sharing borders, heritages, trades and so on. Forget and forgive and let’s all come together. The politics of division must end.
In a conclusive remark, I congratulate Dr. Riek Machar Teny, Dau Aturjok and Mabior Garang. Their effort to try and bring us together has been there for everyone to see. They have been behind that relentless cry for that Addis Ababa peace agreement to be signed. Riek Machar was able to sign the peace deal in Addis Ababa and then made it to the UN summit in New York with the intent to show the world that he is willing to co-operate in resolving the crisis of South Sudan. No secrete there.
Kiir is nothing but that. Juba became his hiding ground where somehow, he gets protection while innocent civilians are dying by the numbers across the country. Deaths that are instigated by none other than him. He is killing his own people in the name of “greater bar-el-gazal” while majority of them cannot even explain what these filthy wars are all about. To Dau Aturjok and Mabior Garang, deliver to us a better vision for South Sudan and stop this “great” nonsense. Do not bring back this greater bor, bar-el-gazal, equatoria, etc, crap. This is what the genesis of the war was. It is polarizing and it is in the best of our interest as a society/country to bring it to an end.
The author is a concern South Sudanese residing in Canada. He can be reached at agoukur@gmail.com.
2 comments
God help us through leaders who inspired to unite us. You said all my fellow country Man and your are absolutely correct, together we can stop this Madness.
Thank brother for this very excellent article, in my country s. Sudan there is few people who can tell the truth like you, what you write in this article is really beginning of our problems, may our Lord God change our politicians minds .