FROM: DR. REMEMBER MIAMINGI
TO:
1. H.E. President Salva Kiir Mayardit
President of the Republic of South Sudan, Commander-in-Chief of the South Sudan People’s Defense Forces (SSPDF)
2. H.E. Dr. Riek Machar Teny, First Vice President of the Republic of South Sudan
3. H.E. Vice President James Wani Igga, Vice President of the Republic of South Sudan
4. H.E. Vice President Rebecca Nyandeng De Mabior, Vice President of the Republic of South Sudan
5. Hon. Gen. Kuol Manyang Juuk, Senior Presidential Advisor (former Minister of Defense)
6. Hon. Gen. Daniel Awet Akot, Senior Presidential Advisor
7. H.E. Pagan Amum Okiech. Former Secretary-General of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM); leader of the Real SPLM (per some sources)
8. Lt. Gen. Thomas Cirillo Swaka, Leader of the National Salvation Front (NAS), former Deputy Chief of Staff in the SPLA
9. Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin, Chairman of the National Democratic Movement (NDM), former Minister of Foreign Affairs
10. Dr. Majak d’Agoot, Former Deputy Minister of Defense
11. Hon. Angelina Teny, Former Minister of Defense and Veterans Affairs and Minister of Interior
12. Gen. Oyay Deng Ajak, Former Chief of Staff and Minister of National Security)
13. Gen. James Hoth Mai, Former Chief of General Staff, SPLA
14. Hon. Gabriel Changson Chang, Former Minister of Finance and leader of the Federal Democratic Party (FDP)
15. Prof. Cirino Hiteng, Former Minister of Culture, Youth and Sports
16. Hon. Awut Deng Acuil, Minister of General Education and Instruction (formerly Minister of Foreign Affairs & International Cooperation in a caretaker capacity)
17. Hon. Kosti Manibe Ngai, Former Minister of Finance and Economic Planning
18. Dr. Anne Itto, Former Acting Secretary General of the SPLM
19. Other Distinguished Leaders of the SPLA/SPLM,
Your Excellencies and Comrades,
I write to you with profound respect for your historical contributions to the liberation of our nation. Many of you risked your lives in the bush—shedding blood and sweat—to unshackle South Sudan from the chains of oppression through a liberation struggle that was neither led by angles nor perfect but achieved its first goal despite internal divisions and competing interests. Your courage, political acumen, and intellectual depth stirred an entire generation to fight for our collective freedom.
I am acutely aware that leading a newly independent nation like South Sudan, birthed into deeply entrenched historical, political, and tribal complexities, is challenging. However, since similar challenges did not abort the liberation struggle, these challenges should not overshadow the responsibility now to restore the dignity and well-being of our people.
As someone who has neither directly participated in the armed struggle nor borne the weight of national leadership but has witnessed and benefited from the heroic sacrifices made, I write and pose questions that weigh heavily on my mind and conscience not from a place of moral superiority but from deep concern and shared responsibility for our nation’s future. In that spirit, allow me to raise pressing questions, propose recommendations, and issue a call to decisive action:
- The puzzling defeat in Juba: South Sudan was liberated because you outsmarted the NCP elements inside and outside the SPLA/SPLM. However, the South Sudan project collapsed, partly because the NCP elements within outmaneuvered you after the Referendum. Will you let the NCP acolytes and provocateurs speak the last word on South Sudan’s destiny, or will you reclaim the voice and vision of the incomplete liberation you once led with courage and conviction?
- Reflections on comrades left behind: It must be difficult, isn’t it, to reconcile the daily anguish of families whose loved ones made the ultimate sacrifice on the front lines with the promises of liberation? What explanations will we offer to our fallen comrades—those left in unmarked graves or abandoned to the mercy of nature when we meet them in the afterlife—when their families, once confident in our pledge to protect and provide, now beg for bread on Juba’s streets and live in absolute squalor? And what explanation can we give to the veterans who survive but often go unpaid for months, driven to desperation or even suicide for failing to keep the promises they once made to their children while a small circle of your comrades luxuriates in unimaginable wealth?
- Protecting the legacy of a revered movement: Under your collective leadership—or at least under your watch—our once-revered liberation movement has devolved into a cluster of warring militias and uniformed criminality. How do you wish history to remember your stewardship when the country you birthed lies in ruins, stripped of hope despite its abundant resources and international goodwill?
- The waning “holy rage”: What will it take to reignite the same righteous determination that once inspired you to leave behind academic posts, comfortable jobs, or a stable existence to fight for our freedom to now confront by all means necessary and lawful the new oppression visited upon our people by their leaders—leaders some of who once marched under the same banner of liberation?
- The call to reunite for the Nation’s future: Some of you remain engaged in a continued armed struggle; others dedicate yourselves to mediation- a struggle by other means. Each role is vital. Yet, time is running out. As our citizens grow increasingly disillusioned, the next generation, born in independence yet destined to know only death, destruction, displacement and despair, may see no difference between you and those who murder and exploit our people. They may soon reject your legacy entirely if you do not urgently and collectively act to end their suffering. Will you come together—beyond personal ambitions and the rivalries of old—to cleanse South Sudan of this new, deadlier yoke of oppression? Will you muster the political will and moral courage to “dishonorably discharge” those who have betrayed the very principles for which so many sacrificed their lives?
- History’s verdict and generational responsibility: Some might argue that you have already done your duty by securing our territorial independence and that nation-building belongs to the new generation. Yet, in the eyes of many, that argument rings hollow if the foundation left behind is so compromised by divisions and self-interest that no lasting nation can be built upon it.
- A call to action: The condition of our people has reached a desperate and heartbreaking state. Families are torn apart by displacement, children go to bed hungry, and communities struggle to survive amidst unrelenting hardship. In such dire circumstances, there is no room for the luxury of clinging to history, ideology, movements, or political parties. The only ideology South Sudan needs now is patriotism—the unwavering commitment to rescue our people from their suffering and restore their dignity. The time for divisions is over; the time to act is now.
- To our youth: “Young people are the engine of every revolution and the architects of every nation’s future.” Today, you are responsible for setting South Sudan on a course of genuine transformation. Remember that those who fought in the bush and now lead—however fallible—did not wait for their elders to hand them an invitation. They seized the initiative, took the proverbial bull by the horns, and committed to a cause greater than themselves. We appeal to you now, our youth, to recognize this moment of reckoning. Grasp your rightful place in the struggle for a prosperous, just, and united South Sudan. Let no one convince you that you must stand idly by. This is your time—rise, organize, and lead.
Fellow compatriots, history gives our generation a choice and a second chance at redemption. We can reclaim and elevate the legacy we fought for, or we can allow it to fade into disrepute before a disenchanted youth may dismantle all you created—just as you once dismantled an oppressive regime. This letter is a plea and a challenge: Reignite the sacred purpose that first guided you in the bush. Unite to rescue South Sudan from the forces of greed, impunity, and hopelessness that have shattered our dreams and continue to.
Despite everything, the spirit of liberation and progressive politics can still prevail. Yet, it requires urgent introspection, a resolute commitment to rescuing our people, and a willingness to act together to serve the people you once bravely fought for.
It is important to remember that previous attempts to unite and align progressive forces have often failed, undone by internal wrangling, competition over spoils, and a lack of unwavering commitment to the interests of our people. At this critical moment in our nation’s history, we simply cannot afford another collapse of unity. Our people’s hopes—and their very future—hang in the balance. Let us learn from the past, stand firm in our resolve, and seize this opportunity by another new year to finally fulfill the promise for which so many have paid the ultimate price.
The starting point for rescuing South Sudan is a genuine roundtable of all our nation’s leaders—a gathering not defined by another round of peace talks or mediation but by a genuine leadership dialogue devoted to rescuing South Sudan and restoring dignity to our people. I hope that true statesmanship will rise above positions, titles, and differences in the service of our people.
With profound respect, concern, and unwavering hope!
Dr. Remember Miamingi is a South Sudanese expert in governance and human rights, as well as a political commentator. He is currently based in South Africa and can be contacted via email at remember.miamingi@gmail.com.