Citizens in Yei River State have called on both the state and national governments and the armed rebel group to prioritise peace and stability this year.
In interviews conducted by Radio Tamazuj, several local residents said that there should be a lasting peace so they could access good basic services in the area.
David Meta, aged 26 year, called for an end to the current civil war and concentrate on development in South Sudan. He called on political leaders to ensure an inclusive dialogue to end the suffering of the people of South Sudan.
“In this year 2017, we hope for good things so that children can go to school to study and come back home for development. I am also calling on the government and the stakeholders to speed up the implementation of a lasting peace this year 2017,” he added.
Meanwhile, Fekirah Josephine, who wants to study law this year, said that peace is the only way to end the suffering of the poor South Sudanese. “Peace is the only way forward to stop the suffering of the people. I have a dream of becoming a lawyer in the future so that we can all together practice truce and justice without corruption, but only real and equal justice “she said.
Betty Tumalu, another local resident, urged the people of South Sudan to promote love, peace and unity across the country.
“The biggest thing we want is love, because with love, we can inculcate peace and unity in our societies. This should be practiced so that the people who wanted to create hatred will see peace from you through the love you have shown to others,” she said.
For his part, South Sudan’s First Vice President Taban Deng Gai, called for an end to the ongoing civil war during his visit to Yei last week. He appealed to the armed opposition group and citizens in Yei to embrace dialogue and reconciliation to move the country forward.