The ministry of culture, youth, and sports in South Sudan’s Northern Bahr el Ghazal State has lifted a three-month suspension on the state youth union elections.
The elections were suspended in December last year after county commissioners complained that the nomination process was unfair and not gender representative.
David Deng Wek, the state youth minister, said on Friday that the ministry had started receiving new lists of candidates from the five counties.
“Some lists of the candidates have arrived and some are still with the county commissioners but they will arrive next week,” he said. “The former lists were sent back because they contained a lot of errors sent them back because the presentation of female and payam representatives was too weak.”
Alom Atak Ayom, a female candidate, told Radio Tamazuj she will focus on uniting the state youth.
“What I will do at first is to unite all the youth in Northern Bahr el Ghazal and make them work towards improving the development of the country such as the education system, the effects of the floods and get them involved in politics to become ideal leaders of tomorrow,” she declared.
Another contestant, Ahou Garang, said: “We have to be agents of nation-building and we are in a position to ensure that the youth should not be manipulated. They will understand the realities on meaning political parties, organizations, and being South Sudanese because youth are currently confused.”