ANARCHY IN WESTERN BAHR EL GAHZAL STATE: The “Fertit” / “Sudanic” Tribes Marginalized and Abused by the SPLM

By Elias Nyamlell Wakoson

The events of Monday, August 4, 2008, in which the Governor of Western Bahr El Ghazal State, Gen. Mark Nyipouch, ordered the arrest of seven top State members of the SPLM from the Fertit (Sudanic) tribes and Dinka Marial Bai (Wau) is unfortunate, to say the least. The Wau event is the culmination of over three years of anarchy in the State, marginalization, vicious nepotism, and savage tribalistic domination of the Fertit (Sudanic) tribes and Dinka Marial Bai (Wau) by a governor who claims to do all these evil things in the name of “Greater Luo.” Yet Governor Mark Nyipouch is a member of the SPLM, a party that sacrificed millions of lives for the sake of stopping marginalization, a party that claims to bring peace, equality, justice, democracy, and prosperity to the people of the New Sudan. Why has Mark Nyipouch violated all the noble principles of the SPLM with impunity? I think the answer lies with the SPLM, itself. Either the SPLM is not serious, or some SPLM members are more equal than others, and can violate all the tenets of the party with impunity.

The misgovernance and wanton abuses of authority have been going on in Western Bahr El Ghazal State since the inception of the state. The victims of the mismanagement of Western Bahr El Ghazal State have made numerous petitions to the top leadership of the SPLM and GOSS, but to my amazement, no concrete actions were taken to rectify the situation. The patient victims, including myself, of the dirty government in Western Bahr El Ghazal, first adopted the prudent course of action of wait, things will improve, since the SPLM leadership, and GOSS cannot allow one person and his crooked cronies to destroy a state and the SPLM Party.

The Fertit consider me their senior representative in the SPLM hierarchy. They made the same petitions to me. I talked to the top leadership of the SPLM about the problems of Western Bahr El Ghazal State. All I got was, we shall do something about it, but nothing was ever done. I ran out of patience and decided to keep quiet; hoping the leadership of the Party will listen to the agonizing wailing of my people. I was wrong and the perpetrators gained confidence in political and administrative abuse of my people. It is for this reason that I have decided to go public with the case of my people. I can no longer stand aside and see my own Party comrades marginalize my own people without regard to the tenets of the very Party I have dedicated my whole life to serving.

I have gone public to save my political party, the SPLM, from disintegrating, in not only Western Bahr El Ghazal State, but also the whole Sudan. The collapse of the party in one state is a bad signal for all the other states. That is why I have dedicated myself, in Northern Sudan, with the leadership of the SPLM Northern Sector, to build the party

In the north: I traveled to Shendi, Ed Damer, Atbara; traveled by train via Abu Hamad to Old Halfa; traveled for over sixteen (16) hours at night through a roadless mountainous desert terrain to Dongola; (in Dongola I had a near death incident in which my ferry quit working and the boat was floating aimlessly downstream.) ; then to Merowi and to Khartoum through small towns. Our trip also took us to Wad Medani, then Gedaref, and Kassala. I went to Damazine, and I traveled to Kadugli. I went to El Geneina and El Fasher. Numerous rallies in the Khartoum State. Why did I do all these? Basically, for the love of my political party and in fulfillment of Dr. John Garang de Mabior’s dream of building the SPLM from Nimule to Wadi Halfa and from Kassala to El Geneina. In the company of SPLM Deputy Secretary General, Northern Sector, Yassir Said Arman, I fulfilled Garang’s dream. When we arrived Old Halfa and seeing the multitude that received us, I looked at Yassir Saeed Arman, and tears rolled down my cheeks—I said to myself, it should have been Garang, but….This short experiential narrative shows that no body is more SPLM than I am or my people in Western Bahr El Ghazal. It is for this reason that I raise my voice, publicly, so that we all stop SPLM state officials from marginalizing and abusing other SPLM members.

I was once to go to Wau to try to resolve the ongoing problems. For some reasons, my trip was frustrated by people in the Secretary General’s office. I asked for explanation from the Secretary General and never got one till today. In Wau, rumors were circulated that I was going to campaign for the replacement of the governor—not true. The SPLM office gave me a car that stopped on the road. I had to borrow a car from a friend for my trips. The rally I was supposed to make was frustrated and I cancelled it. Now looking back, there was a concerted effort from the Greater Luo group to marginalize me in my own hometown—oh! God help us. Worst was the news from my governor. While I was in Juba, a senior SPLM member asked me why did you not tell the governor you were coming to Wau, and why did you not visit with him? I said, I did both. Mr. James Lual went from Juba to Wau to prepare for my visit. I also sent an advance team, who met with the governor. Yet the governor told the Senior SPLM member that, when I went to Wau I did not see him. Big lie because we went with the Secretary General of the Party for the State, Mr. Effisio Kuanj, and sat and talked for a while. Make your own judgment.

In the pre-convention period, many complaints were launched against the governor. SPLM headquarters responded by sending senior officials to Wau, yet nothing tangible came out of the meetings. The whole situation boiled down to the Fertit and Dinka Marial Bai (Wau) wanted to boycott the National Convention. I pleaded with senior Fertit members not to boycott the convention because it would mean the beginning of the fracturization of the party in Western Bahr El Ghazal State. Working behind the scenes, I succeeded to convince the Fertit group to go to the convention. That may be one of the reasons they elected me to the National Liberation Council, after rebuking me for not paying much attention to my constituency by going there. I said mea culpa three times.

At the end of the convention, in Juba, I called for the meeting of all National Liberation Council members of Western Bahr El Ghazal State, including our governor, and we met in his hotel. I briefed the governor about the complaints against him. I told him in clear terms that he should work on overcoming tribalism and nepotism. I promised the governor I would work with him to overcome his problems with the Fertit. I suggested to him that, he should organize a tour of the state for all the National Liberation Council members of the state to talk to people about peace and reconciliation. Above all, I said it would boost his image when the Fertit see him in the company of high profile Fertit SPLM members. I also told him that he was governor for the whole state and not only the Jur and he should stop picking quarrels with subordinates. These were my goodwill gestures to our governor, and I told him in his face, not behind his back. The governor went to Wau, ignored me, and never changed his old ways.

Governor Mark Nyipouch does not want to be helped. The incident to arrest people without the due process of the law is wrong. Detaining people under house arrest without charges is wrong. Firing people from their jobs without any good reasons is wrong. The list goes on.

People are very angry in Wau, and Wau is at the brink of a violent eruption. I am talking to people to be calm, but without my presence, anything can happen. The steps taken by the SPLM leadership is commendable, but it falls short of taking the issue of the Fertit and Marial Bai Dinka serious. Here I am the most senior member of the Fertit group in the SPLM, and I am not asked to help. My people are already saying, the fact that the leadership has ignored me means that they consider the Fertit are not a political force to reckon with. This is sad and ….

In conclusion, I want to appeal to all SPLM members of goodwill that Western Bahr El Ghazal State needs a change in SPLM leadership. We cannot condone the excesses of one person at the risk of fracturizing the party. I stand commit to the SPLM’s unity, but I cannot forever profess this unity when my people are being senselessly abused. I know the SPLM is not comfortable with public discourse that challenges some of their doing, but when they close the door for internal quiet discourse, I have to take the risk of speaking publicly, come what may come. I love the SPLM, and I love my people, not for tribalistic reasons; I liberated myself from tribalism over fifty years ago, but because I hate and abhor somebody using tribalism to exploit others. This is contrary to all SPLM principles, and I am ready to die for the noble SPLM tenets. The SPLM has noble universal tenets and everybody must defend these tenets even if it may cost one’s life as it has consumed the lives of our martyrs, whom I weep for everyday. Let us all save Western Bahr El Ghazal State from degenerating into anarchy.

To the angry Fertit and Dinka Marial Bai (Wau), be calm and avoid violence against those who mistreat you. Violence breeds violence, so that is not an option for us. Be calm and most importantly, remaining SPLM. Individuals do not equal SPLM, thus the SPLM will resolve our problems, and I hope quite soon.

I have nothing personal against the governor, but there has been too much smoke in the air for one to ignore that there is fire that causes the smoke.

My view on central question of Unity and Separation in the Sudan

By Madut A. Majok

I strongly believe that many Sudanese from all the four geographical regions of the Sudan do not want to dismember the country. The blame on separation which is a likelihood for the case of South Sudan lies squarely on elites from Northern Sudan who were and are still hell bent to defined Sudan in their own image without due consideration to its rich diversity.

Whatever southerners, Dafurian and people from Eastern Sudan decide in the future should be viewed as a reaction to perennial injustices they have endured since Sudan gained its rightful place among independent nations in 1956.

Surely, separation will come, but its achievement is not the wish of many Sudanese as mentioned earlier. The injustices meted out on south Sudanese and now on people of Darfur have made many Sudanese from peripheral regions to view separation as the only viable solution.

If our compatriots from the North are serious about Sudan’s unity, they should take it as a matter of urgency to identify themselves with the marginalized people and not with those of Naife Ali Naife and other bigots. With Naife speaking on their behalf, the marginalized will always consider Naife’s continuity to spew poison as the signal for us to part ways.

More efforts needed to cope with peace implementation – UN

From Sudantribune site Friday 15 August 2008 05:30.

August 14, 2008 (KHARTOUM) — UN envoy to Sudan stressed that more efforts are needed to cope with the implementation of a peace process as agreed in the 2005 deal. He also said a working Abyei roadmap can serve as catalyst for progress of the peace process.

Ashraf Qazi

Two days before to brief the U.N. Security Council on Saturday, Ashraf Qazi, the Secretary-General’s Special Representative for Sudan pointed out the fragility of the peace process and voiced concern over lack of progress in may outstanding issues.

Qazi welcomed the recent appointment of Chief and Deputy Administrator of Abyei area hoping that this step will accelerate the implementation of the others clauses of the roadmap in order to allow the return of Abyei displaced people.

The U.N. envoy urged the northern and southern Sudan troops to withdraw fully from a flashpoint oil region where last May fighting threatened to reignite civil war. Abyei clashes displaced up to 50,000 people and killed at least 89 others.

"We are urging both sides to fully complete their withdrawal so that the JIUs can deploy, patrol throughout the Abyei area," he said.

Qazi said pockets of both parties forces, who were "not large" and "not significant", still exist in the disputed Abyei area but that all forces had left town. There are around 300 soldiers who remain in the area.

However the envoy said "We do not see this as a major problem. It’s just a question of delays and we are engaged with both sides and I’m confident that soon these forces will have completely withdrawn from the area," said Qazi.

Under a roadmap for Abyei signed on June 8, north and south Sudan were to withdraw all their previous forces, deploy joint military units (JIUs) and appoint an administration to govern the area until a referendum on its fate in 2011.

The UN envoy also spoke about the interdependency of the different compounds of peace process in Sudan.

Qazi hoped that a National Electoral Commission (NEC) would be formed quickly and offered U.N. help for the preparation for the first democratic vote in 23 years.

Unconfirmed reports in the Sudanese capital say that Abel Alier could take the presidency of the NEC, the National Congress Party said it has no objection. The members of the electoral boy have to be neutral with no political affiliation with the political parties.

He also underlined the ongoing delay in the implementation of other outstanding issues like the demarcation of the 1 January 1956 boundary and the disarmament, demobilization and reintegration DDR.

With regard to the consequences of the ICC indictment, the head of the mission said they are prepared for such eventuality, but hailed Khartoum’s pledge that it will continue to cooperate with the UNMIS.

from: http://sudantribune.com

NCP commits another blunder in appointing a special prosecutor for Darfur War Crimes

By Madut A. Majok

The NCP has undoubtedly exhausted all options in its attempt to fight off the indictment against President Omar Al Bashir. If it had better alternatives it could have not settled for setting up another illegitimate prosecutor office like the one that failed earlier on to arraign Ahmed Haroun and Ali Kushayb.

Did Abdel Basit Sabdarat, the minister whose justice fell under his docket considers Sudan’s wounded reputation in the international circles when he issued his sham decree appointing a special prosecutor for Darfur War Crimes? Did he know that the international community has run out of patience with Sudan? Even the Chinese are now feeling the heat for supporting an ally that commit blunder after blunder.

If the intention of instituting prosecutor office three weeks after Al Bashir indictment is to evoke the ICC’s complimentary clause, then Mr. Sabdarat should have known the time he should have done that has gone. As observed by Dr. Hadi Shalluf, the defense counsel for Darfur, Sudan could have moved to prosecute war criminals a long time ago.

If the NCP is really serious about prosecuting Darfur war criminals, let it starts by firing both Haroun and Kushahb from their ministerial positions and detain them in Kobar prison before it tells the world about the sham prosecution office. It should have been clear by now that feet dragging is detrimental at the long run. The noose on Al Bashir neck is tightening each day and salvaging him from the ICC jaws require drastic actions not mere shameful acts like setting up a politically motivated prosecution office.

Governor Nypoch detains 7 SPLM officials in Wau!

By Khartoum Monitor Staff Writer

The Governor of Western Bahr El-Ghazal State, Mark Nypoch has detained seven (7) top members of Sudan People's Liberation Movement (SPLM) in Western Bahr El-Ghazal State who are predominately from Fertit Tribes and Dinka Marial Bai (Marial Wau).

On Monday 4th August 2008, Nypoch issued arrest warrants for the former government officials in the state who have been relived from their positions two weeks ago on allegation of "conspiracy" against him (Nypoch).

The detained officials are: Col. Rezek Zachariah Hassan [Keresh by tribe) and former Commissioner of Raja County, Lt. Col. Wol Madwang [Dinka Marial Bai) and former Commissioner of Jur River County, Brig. Gen. Wol Akeich [from Dinka Marial Bai] and former Economic Advisor to governor Nypoch, Mr. Baptist Sebit Francis [Golo by tribe] and former Minister of Information and Communications of the government of Western Bahr El-Ghazal State, Uncle Anthony Ubur(an elder from Balanda tribe) and former Minister of Agriculture during the time of governor Dr. Michael Mili Hussein, and his son, Mr. Luka Anthony Ubur [Balanda by tribe a teacher by profession] and Chairman of the SPLM Youth in Western Bahr El-Ghazal State who was fired by March Nypoch, and Mister Anyar Anyar[Dinka Marial Bai] and former Minister of infrastructures in Western Bahr El-Ghazal State and now a Lecturer at the University of Bahr El-Ghazal.

Speaking to Khartoum Monitor Newspaper by phone from Wau yesterday, Col. Rezik Zachariah said they have been apprehended due to the fact that o Sunday, 3rd August 2008, they paid a visit to Marial Bai and enlightened the local population on the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) in their capacity as SPLM officials, and upon their return, the governor ordered their arrest.

He said Nypoch also accused them of having forty (40) guns in their houses and when Nypoch's forces storm-searched their houses, there were no weapons found.

Col. Zachariah described what is happening in his state as "Nypoch's political tyranny", adding that Nypoch see them as "threats and adversaries" to him as long as they share one state and also as members of the SPLM as election time approaches in 2009.

The SPLM officials were arrested at 6:00 PM on Monday and are still in detention till now. When the news of the arrest of the seven SPLM officials reached Khartoum , some SPLM members from Western Bahr El-Ghazal State communicated with the First Vice President and President of the Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS), Let. Gen. Salva Kiir Mayardit and he (Kiir) ordered Nypoch to immediately release the detained SPLM officials (that very night), only that Nypoch did not "obey" Kiir's order, sources from Wau disclosed!

At the same time, sources from Wau divulged that when the news of the arrest of the SPLM officials reached different corners of Wau town late Monday evening, some disgruntled Dinka Marial Bai men and youth rushed to Nypoch's house in an attempt to revenge and also to the house of the SPLM Secretary General in the State, Mr. Kamil Wani [who was reported to have jumped over the fence] escaping death narrowly!

The same sources stated that, that phenomenon would have created another tribal conflict in Wau.

GoSS President Salva Kiir Mayardit on Tuesday sent his envoys from Khartoum and Juba to Wau to help rescue the situation. The State Minister at the Presidency, Joseph Lual Achuil and Kiir's Office Manager in Juba , Mr. Martin Madut arrived in Juab heading a high level delegation (which includes a brigadier from Sudan Security and National Intelligent) .

The committee headed by The State Minister at the Presidency, Joseph Lual Achuil met with the state government in Wau yesterday and the meeting ended at 2:30 PM and later met with the detained SPLM officials in detention centers and later the committee decided to release them.

Nypoch insisted that the detained officials be put under house arrest with police guarding them in their houses and insisted that the Wau police should be the one to investigate with them, but Achuil who leads the committee rejected and said his committee will investigate and take a report to GoSS President and SPLM Chairman, Salva Kiir in Juab—Sources in Wau disclosed.

It is also revealed that Kiir will summon Nypoch to Juba to explain why he arrested SPLM officials and vindicate his allegations.

Performance contracts are the way out from corruption and slow service delivery in S. Sudan.

By Madut A. Majok

A lot have been written about corruption and stagnation in service delivery to the people of S. Sudan since GOSS was formed in 2005. This out cry is justified, because the masses of S. Sudan and marginalized areas have endured the hardship for two painful decades of war. Now that peace is achieved, a lot of people are looking up to the government to provide services or at least to show them some direction towards self-reliance.

With significant resources from oil wealth and commitment of donors to fund reconstruction of S. Sudan, many people are surprised at GOSS’s inability to speed up service delivery. People have pointed fingers at corruption as an impediment and debated this point over and over again in many internet forums used by S. Sudanese. However, what people have failed to do in this continuous debate/discussion around this issue is to provide ways on how to tackle it. The discussions have often been overshadowed by political considerations to the point that in the process we are distracted from suggesting the way forward.

I believe many of us who have participated in the debates are coming to the realization that this morass will never be defeated unless we present our views on how to tackle it. This piece is my attempt to suggest what could be done to move things forward. I sincerely hope that some of you irrespective of where you reside around the globe will join hands with me and put forward our ideas on how GOSS should serve S. Sudanese.

In this article, I am suggesting three things GOSS must undertake to reverse the current trend:-

1. All levels of government in S. Sudan must be encouraged to apply performance contracts (PC) in their hiring process. A PC for the sake of clarification is a written agreement between a manager of a state enterprise who promises to achieve specific targets in a certain time frame and the government which usually promise to reward achievement with a bonus or other incentives[1].

Since performance contracts call for strong institutional backing in order to be effective, others will argue that S. Sudan does not have strong institutions to provide sufficient incentives and commitment of both parties to the contract. However, accepting lack of institutions argument as a reason why (GOSS) is not establishing strict results oriented hiring is to miss a point. By adopting PCs, GOSS will be making it easier for those responsible for hiring civil servants to set goals and evaluate achievements. It will also make it harder for the same people to hire incompetent relatives or tribesmen, because they know that PCs allow for stringent evaluation that gives positive incentives to excellent performance and negative ones for a shoddy job. Armed with this tool, GOSS could easily weed out both in competent and inefficient employees who are draining its treasury and are not productive.

2. All levels of government must make it a policy to educate employees at lower level to understand the relationship between remuneration and productivity. Every pound paid out to employees must be earned honestly. Everyone in S. Sudan from the farmer in the country side to the office worker in towns must sweat to make a living. Failure to enforce discipline among government workers is the surest way to failure. The same could be said with paying people who are not productive. Surely, we can not afford to encourage a culture where government jobs are seen as leeway to escape hard work. Last year in Wau, I saw government employees sitting under a tree and engaging in unnecessary conversation during work hours. In countries where work discipline is enforced; employees can do what I saw only during their break time. Tree shades are not substitute for offices unless those who indulge in this habit do not have clear job descriptions.

3. GOSS must be prepared to spend money on expertise that is not available in S. Sudan. Judging on how contracts are awarded since GOSS was formed and the kind of services delivered on behalf of GOSS, it is reasonable that GOSS disengaged itself from awarding contracts to briefcase companies own by nationals. Instead, GOSS must institute a competitive bidding process that is open to competent and reputable local, regional and international companies. To ensure delivery on contracts, all bidding companies must demonstrate requisite business integrity as well as financial and organizational competence. Any company without demonstrable business experience and organizational competence should be eliminated in the bidding process. This way, the government can deliver the required services instead of enriching few individuals who are smart enough to register companies on paper which are not backed by obligation to fulfil their contractual demand.

[1] Definition taken from Mary, Shirley and Lixin, Colin Xu Policy Research Working Paper titled “The empirical Effect of Performance contracts: Evidence from China.

Apologist, is this acceptable to you?

By Madut A. Majok

Oh, apologist of the Sudanese state, the supporters of rent seeking, the murderers of fellow compatriots, the assembly of greedy racketeers, the oppressors of the peripheral regions in the Sudan for the last 52 years, your days are numbered.

Violence, your alternative to dialogue in solving national issues has been neutralized by the heroic deeds of the marginalized. Religion, the vehicle you have used to rally the poor to support your greed has been betrayed by your own actions in Darfur and tainted by your support of international terrorism.

Instead of shouting slogans in the support of Al Bashir who has brought nothing to Sudan but shame, we are better off trying to find what we can do to heal the wounds inflicted on the marginalized people and to build a New Sudan on the premise of equality in citizenship, where we are all governed by the axiom: Equality for all and privileges for none? Apologist, is this acceptable to you?