The people of South Sudan have lost confidence in the current government due to the ongoing crisis across the country, South Sudan’s Minister of Information and Communications said.
Speaking during a consultative symposium on good governance and democracy organized by the Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs today, Makuei said citizen’s confidence in the leadership has dropped significantly because some leaders pursue their own interest.
“The trust, the confidence is lost. It is not accountable and as such there is need for us to rejuvenate it. We lost it simply because some of us did not care about all these principles. And as a result, the people lost trust in that government simply because of the conduct of the few,” he said.
Makuei, who is also the government spokesman, said the unity government is mandated by the 2015 peace accord to make peace and create an enabling environment for free and fair elections in 2018.
The official advised the South Sudanese leaders to work hard to restore confidence. “It is because of this situation in which we are today, and there is need for us to correct that situation,” he said.
“We must address the shortcomings that brought about this lack of trust. We must start to build confidence in our people so that they trust their government, so that they respect their government,” he added.
Cabinet Minister Martin Elia Lomuro also decried bad governance, corruption and lack of accountability in public institutions during today’s symposium on governance and democracy in Juba.