The member of parliament representing Tonj East County in South Sudan’s parliament says that his area should not be placed under the administration of ‘Tonj State,’ as set out in President Salva Kiir’s latest decree, but instead it should be given status as a separate state.
In a decree dated 2 October, Kiir created 28 new state governments and effectively abolished the constitutions of the 10 existing states. Warrap State he divided into Twic, Gogrial and Tonj states.
Traditional leaders and state authorities have objected to the decree in Raja County, which Kiir ordered should merge with two counties of Northern Bahr al Ghazal. Today the Luac-jang community of Tonj East County joined in expressing disatisfaction with the terms of the new order.
According to a report by the UN Radio Miraya, community leaders, lawmakers and members of the general public met and agreed to present their demand to President Salva Kiir. Angelo Deng Magol, the MP representing Tonj East a member of the SPLM party, said the people of Tonj East deserve to have their own state because of what he calls their unique identity.
“They are demanding that to give them their own state. They have some number of things that they put down to qualify them to be given their own state: First of all their own identity; within Warrap here they have special identity which is very unique from [Dinka] Rek,” he said.
Magol says the new demarcation that places Tonj East under the administration of Tonj State does not give the people easy access to basic services such as hospitals and schools, explaining, “If you see the newly created Tonj, the distance from Tonj to Luacjang is about 100 miles which is very far and very underdeveloped.”
The MP stated that if the county is given its own status as astate, “We will be able to use our local resources and we will be able to maintain and develop our own state.”
Tonj East borders Unity State’s Mayendit County and Rumbek North of Lakes State.
Separately, Radio Tamazuj learnt of inter-communal clashes in the Tonj East area with heavy casualties. More coverage of this to follow.