President Kiir appoints Yau Yau chief administrator

July 30, 2014 (JUBA) – South Sudan’s president, Salva Kiir, has appointed former rebel leader David Yau Yau as chief administrator of the Greater Pibor Area in Jonglei state.

In a decree issued Wednesday, Kiir cited the peace accord recently signed with Yau Yau’s South Sudan Democratic Cobra Faction as the basis for the new appointment.

The decree, announced on SSTV, also approved creation of seven counties under the chief administrator. These counties include, Gumurok, Likuangole, Pibor, Bertak, Boma, Pochalla-North and Pochalla-South.

Kiir signed into law the peace agreement, which recognised the formation of the Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA) last week. This came after government reached a deal with Yau Yau’s rebel movement in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia last May.

The South Sudanese leader had vowed to ensure the agreement was fully implemented, including the nominating an administrator and availing funds for the construction of a school, hospitals and a road in the Pibor area.

Yau Yau rebelled in 2010 after losing elections to represent Pibor county in Jonglei state’s legislative assembly, accusing the ruling Sudan People Liberation Movement (SPLM) of rigging votes. In 2011, however, he accepted a presidential amnesty, but rebelled again the following year.

(ST)