The South Sudan People’s Defence Forces’ (SSPDF) Fifth Infantry Division stationed in Raja County of Western Bahr el Ghazal state has embraced farming after relative peace and stability returned to the area.
Brigadier General James Riak Par, the commander of the SSPDF troops stationed in Raja County told Radio Tamazuj Tuesday that the soldiers under his command are cultivating sorghum, groundnuts, and okra among other crops on army land and individual gardens.
He said his troops are the only outpost contingent of Division 5 deployed in Raja and that they decided to engage in farming after delays in salary payments.
“As SSPDF, we are doing farming activities in the nearest areas around our camp and we are cultivating groundnuts and okra while in the far-flung areas like Hajar Nus and Khor Shamam, we cultivate Dura (Sorghum),” he said. “We have a government farm for the army but at the same time, each soldier has got his or her own garden. For the government farm, there are days when we all go to cultivate.”
Asked about the relationship between his forces and the SPLA-IO, Gen. Riak said since the signing of the peace agreement, the SSPDF forces in Raja have strived to maintain a good relationship with the armed opposition forces in the two areas of Dulu and Magaya in Raja.
“Our relationship with the SPLA- IO forces is very good since the president of South Sudan signed the peace agreement,” he said. “Now they visit us in the town and we stay with them till their period of visit ends and they go back. We do not have administrative clashes.”
The senior army officer urged the civil population in Raja County to embrace farming without fear of insecurity. He said that despite the delayed rains, they managed to cultivate and expect a bumper harvest in August.
Brig. Riak said his troops embarked on farming because there was no war in the area.
“If the army has nothing to do, they can turn to farm. We were not forced by anybody and this was an idea existing already in South Sudan because we are farmers and nobody should stay idle when it is the rainy season,” he said. “We are the defense forces of South Sudan and those who joined farming did not lay down their weapons but they remain an army and this is just private work to help themselves.”