Central Equatoria State Governor Gen. Augustino Jadalla Wani, during his county visit to Morobo County, called on the government to expedite the integration of armed opposition forces into the national army under a unified command to ensure peace in the country.
Speaking during a meeting with Gen. Jadalla’s delegation over the weekend, Gen. John Mabieh, the commander of the SPLA-IO forces in the Panyume area of Morobo County, blamed “anything that happens” on the slow implementation of the 2018 revitalized peace agreement and urged the government to speed up the process of their integration.
“It is not good to see that no food is brought for the soldiers. A list of soldiers was submitted to the president so you the leaders have you go and put your heads together and work on it. So, if people want to say that the names of Dr. Riek Machar’s soldiers are missing, then they should tell him. Otherwise, his soldiers must be catered for. What does it show when soldiers are abandoned like this? It means our nation is in trouble,” he said. “I am happy that you have come and we do not have any problem. Gen. Welebe, stand firm and this is what we want. We are waiting for action from you people and we do not have any other place to go because we are children of South Sudan.”
“Why have we stayed for many years in the bush without being welcomed?” Gen. Mabieh asked.
For his part, General Wesley Welebe, a top commander of the SPLA-IO, said he is also pushing for the expeditious unification of forces and that he will deliver Gen. Mabieh’s message to leadership.
“We want the speedy unification of forces and the start of phase two so that all forces are one and united,” he stated. “We are all wearing the same uniform with the flag of South Sudan so we are all one people.”
Meanwhile, Governor Jadalla urged the SPLA-IO forces to remain calm as their complaints are forwarded to higher authorities and the bottlenecks slowing down the implementation of security arrangements are addressed. He urged the opposition forces to desist from harassing civilians and committing crimes.
“There should be a good relationship between you the SPLA-IO forces, the government here, and the county commissioners of Morobo, Yei, and Lainya. Do not enter into issues involving civilians,” the governor said. “During our travels here there have been complaints about SPLA-IO soldiers logging timber illegally, bringing Ugandans to cut trees, robbing civilians of their properties, and animals, and also setting up roadblocks. All these things should stop as we take your message ahead to the leadership.”
Jadalla concluded his two-day visit to Morobo County on Saturday in Panyume Payam which has long been under the control of the SPLM/A-IO. The opposition forces recently extended their territorial control to Kendila Boma of Gulumbi Payam where they have restricted access to the county administration by setting up roadblocks on the Morobo-Panyume Road.