Africa-Press – South-Sudan. On Monday, hundreds of protestors in Jonglei State took to the streets of Bor town, demanding the revocation of the recent appointment of Commissioner Samuel Ateny.
Samuel Ateny, who served as mayor of Bor Municipal Council, was appointed county commissioner in a presidential decree last week.
His appointment prompted the residents, mainly women and youth, to go to the streets to protest the decision.
They are instead demanding the reinstatement of former minister of lands, Isaac Mamer Ruk, who did not surface in the mini-reshuffle of Jonglei State cabinet.
Speaking to The City Review, Agot Kuol, one of the protestors, said they want the state deputy government to quickly respond to their calls as the head of the SPLM party in the state.
“Why did the government decide to appoint the former mayor to the position of commissioner?” he asked.
“James Tuor has just spent less than three months in office and has done nothing wrong so far,” Kuol said.
Kuol stated that they were not against the state government but that it needs good leaders who are willing to lead the citizens by not prowling citizens’ properties.
Another protestor, who only identified herself as Martha, said whenever the government has turned a deaf ear to the plights of residents.
“We are widows who are raising children that do not have fathers, but some individuals in the state government are against our progress as we try our best to feed our children,” Martha said.
However, Bol Deng Bol, chairperson of the Jonglei Civil Society Network and the executive director of INTREPID South Sudan, praised the efforts made by the citizens for being peaceful while exercising their rights.
“This is their right as long as they are peaceful and they are doing it right; everybody in South Sudan has the right to express his/her grievances without violence, and with that, we stand with them as a civil society, and their voices should be heard,” Bol said.
He called on the state government to immediately intervene and take the citizens demands seriously.
In the protest, the women and youth have also accused some top national and state government officials of nepotism, adding that they recommend the appointments of some tainted individuals to the appointing authorities.
Source: The City Review South Sudan
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