Authorities confirmed that about a dozen soldiers, who had fired their weapons into the air in protest of unpaid salary arrears in Pochalla Town, Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA), were arrested and forcibly airlifted to Juba for investigation on Sunday.
Thousands of residents fled their homes for safety on Saturday when a group of soldiers from the National Security Services (NSS) and the police subjected the town to a 10-hour artillery barrage. The soldiers were protesting the nonpayment of their salaries and demanding food supplies.
Colonel Amati Ochan, the county police inspector, told Radio Tamazuj on Monday morning that the situation in the town had returned to normal after the protesting soldiers were detained. “The town is now calm, and displaced residents have started returning,” he said.
“On Sunday, we forcibly put the protesting officers on a commercial flight to Juba, including four from the NSS, four from the police, and five from the SSPDF. They were apprehended immediately upon arrival at Juba International Airport,” Col. Ochan added.
He also noted that a meeting chaired by the head of the security committee and the county commissioner was held on Monday morning. The meeting resulted in a resolution that no officer should handle weapons, except for bodyguards and those guarding armories.
Pochalla South County Commissioner Otho Okoti confirmed the return to normalcy in the town, following the unrest. “Since Sunday, the situation has been calm after the officers were airlifted to Juba. To prevent future incidents, we appeal to the national government to relocate military barracks outside the town and implement a rotational policy to ensure soldiers are regularly swapped,” he said.