Al-Mahdi urges Sudanese to free country from its problems
June 2, 2006 (KHARTOUM) — Former Prime Minister and leader of the opposition Umma Party, Sadiq al-Mahdi, told over a million of his supporters at the town of Sinja, Blue Nile State that everyone should work to rid the Sudan of its problems.
He called on Darfur rebels to adopt what he termed “civil jihad” in order to press Sudanese government into convening an all-inclusive conference to realize just peace and install a national government to conduct fair elections.
Al-Mahdi welcomed all peace agreements but said that the way these agreements were signed would create dissension and discord as they were not built on national base.
States should be given their shares in power and wealth and boundaries of the states should be demarcated in accordance with their existing boundaries in 1956, Al-Mahdi added.
He lashed out at the government’s policy of lifting health subsides, its exploitation of power for partisan purposes and its agricultural and industrial policy which has led to unprecedented deterioration in agriculture and industry.
Al-Mahdi compared Sudan to Nigeria, “the government is replicating Nigeria’s experience where people were deprived of the fruits of oil.”
Elevation of Roseires Dam would be the most viable project in Sudan as it would avail it of 4bn cubic metres of unused water, he added.
(KHM/ST)