The newly appointed minister for information and telecommunications in Eastern Equatoria State has promised to ensure that there is freedom of expression and press freedom so that citizens can enjoy the dividends of democracy.
On Wednesday night, President Salva Kiir Mayardit relieved Patrick Oting Cyprian as the state information minister and replaced him with Elia John Ahaji.
Speaking after being sworn in on Friday in Torit, the new information minister, John, said he will work with different stakeholders to advance media freedoms and freedom of expression in the state.
“As an honorable minister of information, I will work closely with my reporters at all field levels to make sure any bit of information is captured and shared for the interest of the people in Eastern Equatoria because there is a lot of information being neglected at county levels. Nobody is there to share the information but as a new strategy, we will try to make sure that county issues are captured,” he said. “I will always urge our journalists to respect their ethics because every institution or profession has its code of conduct. So, I urge my fellow journalists to report things according to the law.
“However, I will also advocate for freedom of expression because it is when people speak freely that we can get the real issues,” the minister added.
John promised to work in coordination with law enforcement agencies and the judiciary to uphold the rights of journalists.
For his part, Charles Okullu, the executive director of Peace Link Foundation, a civil society organization, welcomed the new minister’s remarks, saying it is good news to the public.
“The promotion of freedom of speech is very important because it is now going to provide space for everybody to speak about what is affecting them regardless of how hurtful or difficult the matter is,” he said. “It will now position the citizens to be a little bit free and encourage a culture of democracy and compromise without inciting violence.”
Okullo urged the new minister not to deviate from his promise.
Meanwhile, Charles Onen Lokwaruk, the chairperson of the Civil Society Network in Eastern Equatoria State, welcomed the appointment of the new minister and other officials and pledged to collaborate with them to ensure better service delivery.
“We would like to appreciate the new minister and also pledge to work with him,” he said. “We appreciate the remarks he made promising to ensure that there is freedom of expression in the state.”