President Salva Kiir Thursday urged Bor residents to throw their support behind State Governor Denay Jock Chagor and his deputy Jacob Akec, saying the two men should be supported.
“These two people, I brought them here. I want you to support them in what they are doing so that they succeed in their mission. And I want them to cooperate among themselves,” Kiir said while addressing a crowd of citizens during the inauguration of a building at the Dr. John Garang Memorial University of Science and Technology in Bor town, Jonglei State.
Governor Denay Jock Chagor, a leading member of the South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA), has been facing challenges and resistance since he assumed office in Bor town in July 2020. SSOA is a third party to the 2018 peace agreement.
The South Sudanese leader appealed to the people of Jonglei to support peace and stability, saying he will not accept anybody to come among the citizens and agitate them against the government.
“I want to tell you that you cooperate with your leaders who are with you here, Governor Denay Jock Chagor and his deputy Jacob Akec Dengdit,” Kiir said.
Extension of the interim period
The president updated the people of Jonglei on the roadmap he signed with the opposition on 4 August to allow a two-year extension of the transitional government, in a move foreign partners warned lacked legitimacy.
“We said if we push for the end of the transition so that people go for elections, we should return our people to another war, which I have refused. I cannot take the people of South Sudan back to war,” he said.
“So we agreed all of us that let us extend the transitional period by two years, that is 24 months, and after that, we should go for elections,” he added.
The South Sudanese leader said they extended the period to implement the pending provisions of the peace agreement, pointing out that they do not want to stay in power.
“We want to land softly without taking our people back to war again,” he said. “Our goal this time is not to please others but to do everything right and achieve permanent peace for our people in our country. We are not here to amuse everybody.”
According to President Kiir, he is currently working together with the other peace partners after the extension of the traditional period.
Unity among citizens
President Kiir called on the people of Jonglei to maintain unity of purpose, saying the region needs unity to enhance peaceful co-existence among the various communities, saying inter-communal fighting threatens the gains made in the implementation of the peace agreement.
He said unity would allow the government to dedicate limited resources to important development projects. “I want you to demonstrate this unity by opening peace corridors with your neighbouring counties and stay united and help us in our effort to exit permanently from the cycle of violence,” he said.
Recurring floods
The President said his administration is aware of the threats posed by the floods that have been affecting Jonglei and other areas in South Sudan.
“To address the recurring issue of floods, your government, through the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, is working on a solution that will balance flood control and wetlands protection,” Kiir said.
In June, the transitional government received dredging equipment from Egypt for the project on the Naam River, saying it would mitigate the flooding that displaced thousands in the Upper Nile region. This was met with criticism from environmentalists and activists who said that the plan would result in environmental and economic catastrophe, drying up the country’s Sudd wetlands, which farmers and wildlife rely on.
On 9 July, President Kiir ordered the suspension of all dredging activities in the country until evidence-based studies are carried out on their impact on surrounding communities. He ordered the Environment ministry to engage experts for the feasibility studies.