The Responsibility for South Sudan’s Current Turmoil: It’s Solution

January 25, 2014 (SSNA) — The Inter-Governmental Authority on Development (IGAD) of East Africa and International Community shouldn’t waste their energies, resources and their time by calling upon Salva Kiir’s genocidal Government to do what again! Solution or what? To me any (organization) individual who still expects solution to come from Salva Kiir doesn’t understand my President. Or it might be someone who didn’t follow up what President Kiir had been doing right from January 2013 up to Sunday the 15Dec, 2013.

Can any solution come out of Kiir’s mind? Who can tell me? How? Shouldn’t it be good enough for Salva Kiir as a country Administrator to have had incited a saying: Prevent is better than cure? All South Sudanese, the whole world’s professors, Church leaders, Veteran Political Leaders, Experts, Activists, Journalists and Writers have been calling upon him (Kiir) to find solution to SPLM’s internal crisis democratically. All became in vain!  The author personally had written several articles on how today’s turmoil could be prevented by President Kiir. Instead, the President was just issuing and signing fatal Decrees almost every day, in the National Government level, Party Level, dissolved the party structures simply because he didn’t want to see Dr.Riek Machar together with his colleagues (the detained ones) in the party. 

He wants them annihilated politically for good. So what had happened on 15^th Dec 2013 wasn’t a coup attempt, but it was a ploy masterminded by Kiir Mayar!! Those who might have been in Juba last year would be in full agreement with me. That postponed the SPLM’s national convention from March 2013, was the very ploy. It was the same ploy that led President Kiir recruit personal Militia from his Bahr El Gahzal’s Warrap state. It was that ploy which forced-retired those SPLA Officers whom he (Kiir) perceived as Riek’s loyalists. It was the ploy which removed Eng. Chol Tong Mayay as Lakes State Governor, a pro-democracy. The ploy which stripped the delegated powers of Dr. Riek! Mr. Taban Deng Gai former Unity State Governor was also removed on the same ground. It was the ploy which deployed SPLA against the people in and around Juba on 23th July, 2013.The ploy that removed Riek from Vice President(where the futile president started mixed up Party and Government issues).

President Kiir made it crystal clear on Independence Day 9^th July 2013. The SPLM’s Chairmanship! It was the same ploy that suspended, removed unlawfully Mr. Pagan Amum and put him under house arrest banned him to air no word to the press. The same ploy pronounced by the President Kiir: SPLM’s structure has dissolved itself alone with exception of Chairman’s office. I would want one of his Excellency’s believers to vindicate how a party could dissolved itself alone without affecting Chairman’s office .The same spirit turned down Church Leaders’ appeal to give reconciliation a chance among two SPLM groups “between” 6^th-14 Dec, 2013. The same ploy tried to disarm Nuer elements in the Presidential Guards on 15^th Dec, 2013. President Kiir thinks, the ploy has been successfully completed, when he arrested those eleven SPLM Leaders. To be frank, Kiir wanted to have had Riek Machar arrested and killed. But, when he failed to arrest Riek, he scapegoats the case and says “a coup attempt” has been made by Riek instead of saying” Awan Chan’s Government has failed to arrest & kill Riek” which has been the core of this plan(Decrees).

Now, that party (SPLM) issue has shifted from Riek Machar’s SPLM group to one ethnic group, the Nuer. About, 200-300 Nuer people were massacred in one of the police stations in Juba. A preliminary result of that massacre is now 20,000 (twenty thousand) Nuer people in Juba. The killing continues. So, issues are now become two: 1.  Kiir- Riek issue in the SPLM party, Nuer ethnic group has nothing to do about this. 2. Kiir- Nuer issue—the killing of over twenty thousand Nuer ethnic group by his (Kiir) militias, including his supporters; Riek Machar has nothing to do about this. The latter becomes an issue between Salva Kiir and Nuer people. Therefore, this ethnic group, the Nuer knows now who killed them. Protection of Nuer civilians by the UNMISS, now develops a fragile relation between Kiir Government and UN. Government wants the remnants of Juba Massacre, who are seeking protection in UNMISS compounds to come out and/or kill them secretly, should they reached their homes. 

One of Kiir’s Generals wrote: President Kiir, was democratically elected, so he(Kiir) has right to do whatever he wants to do; not excluding the killing. A elected President of Southern Sudan Government (GoSS) or Republic of South Sudan (RSS)?  Get it right please, otherwise. You want to kill in the name of elected Government. Mr. Michael Makuei (a Minister of confrontations) wanted to start it officially in Bor on 19^th Jan, 2014, when he tried to enter into the compound with RPGs, PKMs and riffles.

Perceptively, is there anything (solution) we should have still expected; a President Kiir can do for us (South Sudanese)? Do you think President Kiir will ever translate in action what we fought for over the last fifty years? Fight against injustice, inequality, marginalization, oppression, dictatorship and killing people? Do you think Salva Kiir will accept Federal system of governance in South Sudan?

Is it your belief that President Salva will separate military (Army) from politics and establish a national Army that is not affiliated to any political party? Warrap state—drawn based militia? Who still believes that Kiir will one day understand people’s rights in South Sudan? Do you think James Wani Igga, if ever he expresses need to become SPLM’s Chairman today, would continue to be Salva Kiir’s Vice President? Can you categorically explain to the author, that a notion of “we’re born to rule” designed against Riek Machar alone? Do you think the massacre of unarmed Nuer civilians in Juba and across South Sudan will: (a) Make Nuer to bow/sit in front of Salva Kiir? (b) Bring stability in the country especially in Awan Chan’s Government? That Nuer are killed/defeated for good!! (c) Make Nuer to cease seeking freedom for all South Sudanese? Do you believe that South Sudan will again be a united country under Kiir Mayardit? Are you optimistic, Nimule Town in Eastern Equatoria will be Ma’adi’s , in years to come if..?

Do you think the killers of  Engineer John Luis, Isaiah Abraham…etc shall be revealed by the government of RSS headed by Salva Kiir? Does Kiir’s Government still maintain its legitimacy after Juba Massacre? After this situation we are in now, where country population receives threats from its own government? Where, an Army has divided by the President based on ethnic lines, following a silence killing staged by Awan Chan SPLA’s elements against their colleagues?  Where a lot of civil servants have already resigned? This silence killing was started in the sitting room of Benydit Kiir Mayar. Lt. Col. Diu Gai, a second guide of Beny Kiir Mayar’s special guards was dragged out in Kiir’s house and killed just some few meters away from the house. Col. James Bamom, also a Nuer, was killed on date 15 Dec, 2013, in the evening after he bravely participated in pushing away the renegades Tiger members from the military barrack in Juba. Many more examples are there.

Finally, Salva Kiir’s ploy of having all his political rivals in the SPLM detained, country ruined, Nuer massacred, etc has partly succeeded. So, the overall responsibility of these messes will be his. However, Salva Kiir himself won’t bring even a partial solution to our current crisis in the country. The only solution to end this turmoil is…..or to say enough is enough. Kiir must go now!! Because he is no longer a legitimate President!

The author is a witness to all processes of President Kiir’s ploy and a survivor of Juba Massacre—where over (38,000 Nuer are believed to have been massacred or missing). He can be reached on [email protected]