Jonglei: Bor town closes over 50 illegal shops

June 13, 2013 (BOR) – The capital of South Sudan’s Jonglei state ordered the closure of 54 shops and stores in Bor town’s Marol Market on Thursday, three days after the office of the mayor gave shop owners seventy-two hours to relocate.

Bor municipality’s deputy chief executive officer, Mabior Athieu, told the press that the decision aims to renovate the area to a modern standard. Authorities deployed police officers in the market to oversee the closures.

Since 2009, butchers have been selling meat on tables in semi-permanent buildings, which are not protected from flies. There are no refrigerators in the market and some of the butchers were accused of selling rotten meat.

One of the shop owners, Martha Nyaluak, said that the government needed to communicate better and give the traders an alternative place to set up their business.

Nyaluak further said she is supporting her two sisters whose husbands were killed in the civil war between Khartoum and Southern rebels before the South Sudan independence in 2011.

The chairperson of Jonglei state chamber of commerce, Daniel Majok Kur, said most of the shops owners were given the plots to construct their shops since the time of the former commissioner of Bor county, Maker Lual.

State assembly enacted public health law

Jonglei state lawmakers recently enacted a meat inspection law to improve the quality meat processing, from when animals are slaughtered to when it is sold, the speaker of the state assembly, Chol Wal, said.

“The bill aims to let people know the importance of meat inspection procedures, disease cases, primary inspection of investigation and records of slaughter houses”, said Wal.

“The bill will protect the public from infection of animals’ diseases, it is for the public to obey, to work according to the new law because these laws are favouring the public and they are for their benefits.,” he said.

He assured the public that those who did not obey the law would be fined.

Law violators ” shall be sentenced to imprison for a period of not less than one year or a fine of 1,000 South Sudanese pounds or both,” Wall said.

The speaker said the bill was to deter people from killing inedible or rotting animals to sell to the public.

New mayor appointed in Bor

On 26 April 2013, Jonglei state governor, Kuol Manyang Juuk, decreed the appointment of Nhial Majak Nhial as the mayor of Bor municipality.

The governor said that Nhial has experience in the field of town planning, pointing out that he worked for a town council in one of Australia’s leading cities.

The promotion of Bor town to municipality status and the appointment of Nhial as mayor Majak have been welcomed by young people in Jonglei.

Row over Bor’s extension

Jonglei’s governor recently reversed an order that Bor town’s be extended by five kilometres and that the county headquarters of Bor county moved outside the town.

last week local MPs, chiefs and elders, in a meeting chaired by Ajuoi Magot, rejected the governor decision arguing that the border should not be expanded.

The governor ordered more land in the new municipality to be distributed under the responsibility of the mayor and asked the commissioner of Bor county to move his office outside the municipality.

After the community handed an objection letter to the governor, the later pledged to reverse his orders, according to Mayom Ngong, a member of parliament representing Kolnyang Payam [district].

“He has withdrawn his orders on the condition that Municipality and County Borders should be drawn”, said Mayom.

However, some community members, including Maker Chol Adol, a member of parliament representing Makuach Payam in the Jonglei state assembly, have expressed doubts that the governor has really reversed his order.

(ST)