SPLM risks loosing Eastern Equatoria State to NCP
By Isaac Vuni
April 19, 2007 (TORIT) — The SPLM State Secretary for Eastern Equatoria, Mr. Felix Otuduha said SPLM may risks loosing Eastern Equatoria State to National Congress Party (NCP) if Governor Brigadier General Aloisio Emor Ojetuk is not change form office.
“If there is no change in the current government of Eastern Equatoria State, SPLM will loose the forth coming election to National Congress Party (NCP) who is aging ground in Torit and Kapoeta counties”, he asserted.
Speaking in an exclusive interview on Thursday, the SPLM State Secretary further accused Governor Ojetuk who is also the chairman of SPLM in the state of constant undermining and interfering in SPLM Secretariat affairs including his role as state party secretary.
He said the best remedy to win credibility for SPLM party in the state is to conduct a thorough screening of SPLM members in both the Executive and Legislators from the time they converted to SPLM party together with those individuals who recommended them to the party authorities.
Otuduha disclosed that there are some people within the Executive and Legislators of Eastern equatorial State who holds double faces; one for SPLM and another for NCP that is secretly supporting their previous members now purporting to be real SPLM simply to obstruct and bring down popularity of SPLM in the state by buying supporters.
The SPLM Secretary of State regrettable that the SPLM Governor Ojetuk is allying with those who have converted to SPLM at the last minutes, now stargazing to remove the actual members of SPLM and that he is their next target; yet the action of the born again SPLM does not reflect the policy and vision of SPLM. In fact, they are still the dies heart of National Islamic Front led government, he declared.
Otuduha further wondered why and how could SPLM leadership in the headquarters allows its party to be misused for personal interest of Governor Ojetuk , whom he say, does not see beyond his own noise.
While Hon. Jermiah Africa, former Leader of Government Business says the biggest mistake the First Vice President of Sudan and President government of southern Sudan, Lt. Gen. Salva Kiir did to the people of Eastern Equatoria State was the appointment of a prisoner of war to governorship position.
It is to be recalled that the now Brigadier General Governor Aloisio Emor Ojetuk was captured along Juba-Torit road in March 1986 and handed over to SPLM/A by Mr. Fexlix Otuduha. Hence the two sons of Otuho community are still nourishing revenges against each other to the present.
Otuduha said he was attacked for the second time in April 2007 by gunmen on April 11th 2007. The first attack was on April 9th and suspected the attackers could have been send by Governor Ojetuk.
Otuduha suggested that the chairmanship of the state should be taken away from Governors and bestowed it fully on SPLM Secretaries of State in order to avoid bulldogging by governor of like Ojetuk.
He further claimed that Governor Ojetuk has used his position to divided Otuho community into two; The Mayha Kingdom who are more favoured by Governor Ojetuk , yet they are community who are fill with jealousy and does not want to emulate any progressive development in the state than creating constant insecurity for NGOs participating in reconstruction and development of the state.
The second group is the Hujang Kingdom whom Governor Ojetuk is trying to sideline from participating in political and governance of the state because he regards them as unproductive community, claim Otuduha.
What we need today in the state is unity of all people, remarks Otuduha.
Meanwhile in a follow up interview with female leader of the state, Mrs. Betty Iboyi, stanch member of SPLM, said the SPLM Secretary should also be active and convince those wavering politicians from previous government to embrace the SPLM as their own party than calling them name such as not proper or real SPLM.
She said the SPLM Secretary should not wait for the Governor Ojetuk to call on him; rather he SPLM Secretary of the state should from time to time consult and update the Governor Ojetuk with necessary information that reflects SPLM party policy on good governance.
Mrs. Iboyi said the position of SPLM Secretary of state needed a person with total integrity than one being divisive in filling positions within the SPLM Secretariat with his relatives.
“If I were the SPLM secretary of state, people surrounding me would reflect the eight counties of Eastern Equatoria than having my own and unqualified relatives who could not even offer appropriate information to people especially to the grassroots supporters”, she remarks.
She went on saying that there are a lot of procedures in SPLM that people needed to know especially on how the set up and functions of SPLM secretariat of state are coordinated from top to the village levels and vice versus.
Mrs. Bethy Iboyi also accused Governor Ojetuk and the cabinet of denying women rights of 25% and deliberately keeping potential and progressive women at bay because of the interest of unqualified cabinet men who are scared and would not like academically qualified women to excel to higher positions in the state.
Despite directives from President Salva Kiir and his vice President Rieck Machar that Governor Ojetuk includes women in his cabinet Ojetuk but persistently deferred his superiors instead revenging on those who challenge his leadership.
Why should men of Southern Sudan particularly Eastern Equatoria State continue to block unabated progress of women? Are we today not living in a free southern Sudan society where anyone could advocate for progressive development; she asks?
She also scoffs at Governor Ojetuk proposed reshuffle list leaked by source closed to him saying, “Why should the Governor nominate his own daughter who just came from University classroom? Are there no experienced doctors among Eastern Equatorian?
Minister of Finance and Economic planning, George Muras Lomoro is quoted having said that the only learned lady in Eastern Equatoria state is his daughter Dr. Olivia Lomoro .He also said the only learned person among the Madi community is Angelo Voga.
Otherwise, she went on, “We have Dr. Elizabeth Ojaba; an experienced doctor in field of reproductive health could be the right person to head the state ministry of health”, she declared.
Do they want to reduce this state down to derange level or what are they after?
Responding to consistence denial of women in the state cabinet, Mrs. Elizabeth Idongo said Governor Ojetuk was and is still very abusive on women who especially those who remain under government controlled areas.
She quoted one of Governor’s utterances such as, “You women from NCP should shout up! Most of you have been exploited by NCP government”
But Mrs. Idongo claimed to have assured Governor Ojetuk that they were not with NCP but SPLM operating under ground within the then system that compelled them to sing their songs (NCP) in order to keep their children and men alive.
Governor Ojetuk could not be reach for comment.
(ST)