Africa-Press – South-Sudan. Some youth in Torit County of Eastern Equatoria State were arrested on Thursday for beating up two Somali traders who have allegedly hiked commodity prices, a local official said.
King David Oyalla of Otuho’s Maya Kingdom – a small royal authority in the area where the incident happened – said the youth would be disciplined for taking the law into their own hands.
The businessmen were being accused of excessively raising prices in their shops without proper calculation of the costs incurred at loading the goods into the area.
“The incident happened yesterday (Thursday), we were here at the King’s Palace, these people told me that the traders hiked the prices of items in the market, but they are wrong for beating the traders,” Oyalla said.
The beating reportedly prompted the traders to close down their shops, but it is not clear if they have reopened.
King Oyalla blamed the local youth for their actions while suggesting that a meeting with the traders to reach a consensus would have been the better approach.
“They would have called the businessmen to have a meeting with them to calculate the prices considering the costs of transportation and other expenses, but the youth are to be blamed.”
The traditional leader said the closure of the shops will cause more suffering since there are few shops owned by the locals.
He also said prices have already shoot up with a 50 kilogram of sugar now selling at SSP 60,000 and a Soda at SSP 800.
“They locked their shops and those who beat them are now in detention because they took the law into their hands. They would have met and discussed with them without beating.”
Oyalla said he will reach out to the military barracks to release the youth from detention so that they can face justice at the palace.
In May 2021, the Otuho’s Maya Kingdom, was revived and given power in a traditional generational handover (Efira) held in the historical shrine known as Hoding in Iloli village along the Torit-Kapoeta Road.
For More News And Analysis About South-Sudan Follow Africa-Press
