Elders Still Defiant and Daring to the Rival Armed Factions

By Deng Vanang.

Sept 19, 2015(Nyamilepedia) —  With elders still defiant and daring, unfavorable sights are now common place in down town Nairobi and any other places that may be off sight as demonstrated on the battlefields in clear violation of previously declared ceasefires allegedly by both sides in the conflict.

Among these unfavorable sights not in good terms with recently concluded Compromise Peace Agreement are some elders behind both rival SPLM/A’s factions.

On the one hand, is a congregation of some Nuer elders who can be seen walking up and down at the foot of Nairobi down town’s sky scrapers. All in their endless hotel meetings and youth incitement to more violence against recently concluded peace agreement. Obviously as already known, the omnipresent spent force is orbiting around SPLM/A-IO’s recent defectors.

While on the other, are some warmongering Dinka elders fairing up with government’s group opposed to President Kiir signing the peace agreement.

Think in this case of a collusion of grannies locking themselves up behind closed doors as they plot against the precious lives of their children and grandchildren for positions and money’s sake under the guise of looking for a just and sustainable peace.

This is type of elders who never thinks of several women now well fast their menopause and rendered childless over night because of their dear sons, their only life investment, who are mercilessly thrown into the blazing flames of this war they know nothing about and shall probably gain nothing from.

In other words, these are elders we suppose to rely on for a life-saving wisdom but now in more determined pursuit of destruction than being protectors of sanctity of lives.

In their deviant determination, a story is told of big money being given to each one of them, rebel group elders, in hundreds of thousands of Dollars by government’s senior agents in Nairobi’s Serena Hotel to the envy of Embassy junior support staff present.

Who confessed openly of almost getting tempted to join these elders and renegade Generals in their fake armed rebellion so that they could at least secure some shares for their poverty ridden families.

I’m not envious of their blood stained money by the way but only mindful of their dignity, if they have one at all, they are dangerously putting on the line for short term merry-making as shamelessly acquired from the attainment of perishable goods called money.

Since of course all are not bad apples but many of whom are good ones who should leave alone the handful few more than willing to ill-afford going rogue under the influence of some rascals who have perfected over the years acts of treasury for illicit money-making and self-serving positions.

Their harmful movements could be partly the reason President Kiir can’t even move an inch out of Juba as he is busy keeping a tight lid on an impending military coup by their cooperate group in Juba in the likes of Pauls and Michaels. While his designated First Vice President, Machar in the bush fends off empty threats from Peters and Gabriels.

All their Christian bearing names turn out to be nothing short of casual bull names meant to fool the Holy Christian houses. Even bulls’ names are better since to the Nilotes are treated with respect. When one is addressed by his bull name he feels honored and is subsequently restrained from getting angry and going berserk. As it seems to the contrary, those are good old days unfortunately gone by.

These respectful elders of ours are nowadays different breeds and can’t even allow the majority the democratic right the yesteryears’ grannies taught us so as to perfect the peace agreement they have chosen through purposed structural reforms and national reconciliation.

All these laughable war games characteristically make South Sudan a place where age is just a number as it doesn’t count for anything but nothing if one can go by what Kenyan President, Daniel Arap Moi alluded to.

Moi reportedly was quoted to have advised Nuer and Dinka elders in Nairobi back in June this year to take up an African typical elder’s role in being exemplary to the youth than engage in fueling deadly conflict back home in South Sudan between two SPLM/A’s rival factions and ethnic communities.

Moi told off Nuer and Dinka elders bluntly in a packed auditorium to advise youth in order to nurture the culture of productive life and love among themselves than to be the lethal instruments that kill and consume them.

Such invaluable advice from the self-proclaimed Professor of politics and acclaimed giraffe by his late rival for Kenyan Presidency, Jaramogi Oginga Odinga so far went unheeded going by what our respected elders are still continuing to do.

From Moi’s elderly statement, SPLMA-IO’s leadership took a leaf and in keeping with national stature, decided to sideline Nuer elders after they were insistent on having their advices implemented.  Their Dinka counterparts, on the other, are currently by and large rendered jobless by the imposed Compromise Peace Agreement when President Kiir thankfully signed it against series of their ill-advice.

They are not oblivious of the advisory tradition which dictates that pieces of advice can only be willfully put into use by the leader concerned and never to be forced on him and neither followed up by those who offer such pieces of advice.

All these elders in due respect could only be better off if the most effective ones are sent to the expanded Council of State on condition all political parties to the agreement mutually agree. While late 1990s Adwok Nyaba – John Luk – Nyuot Kok’s proposal of establishing ‘’South Sudan’s House of Nationalities’’ could be revived in order to accommodate the rest and help the up coming governments towards pacification process of the country.

Armed and dangerous counterparts

The next recourse of action to be expedited by the parties to the agreement is to finish off the residue of their illicit political tactics thereby setting up joint monitoring force sooner than later in cohorts with the slated international peace keepers so as to round up all their errant boys and financiers if the on-going CPA is to be implemented in earnest and unperturbed.

Seal off all the country’s borders from the inflow of unofficially licensed lethal weapons into the hands of these merchants of death. Then, we can see how far their blood stained business they want to keep alive and running can go.

This is not to deny them peaceful exercise of their freedom as part of democracy. Instead, must be reminded of the fact that the days of political racketeering are long gone. Since in the upcoming peoples centered national constitution there will be no anymore family briefcase parties to be encouraged and equally tolerated.

For they have been the integral part and parcel of the on-going conflict as they are used by the incumbent as his helping hand and cannon fodders to politically torture others and constitutionally block required reforms.

In compliance to such rule, they can still be allowed to develop their cardinal ideology that goes by the name federal something or whatever so long as it is acceptable to sizable sections of the society. Never mind the contradiction of a political party that passes for a rebel armed movement. While the rest of the population that chooses to embrace peace, be allowed to proceed with normal life long denied by these marauding busy bodies.

Since most of South Sudanese people got no peace dividends from previous CPA and among them are surviving orphans of past South – North’s civil war.

They shouldn’t be denied peace anymore and its accrued benefits by none other than people who have kept hundreds of their children thousand miles away in overseas from the frying pan.

Where they have all the best life can offer ranging from prestigious education, superb health care to sumptuously full square meals a day and smart clothing. Not to mention a litany of first class spacious lodgings as per African standard.

Their only insatiable need remaining unfulfilled and never to be fulfilled is to fill to the brim bank accounts by shedding innocent blood of these surviving seeds and South Sudan’s children of poor and ignorant hoi polio.

Deng Vanang is a Journalist and author to be reached at:dvanang@gmail.com