Public pressure killed minister, Juba government tells citizens
July 2, 2022 (JUBA) – The Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU) has attributed the recent death of South Sudan’s Environment and Water Resources minister, Peter Manawa Gatkouth to “huge” public pressure.
The First Vice President, Riek Machar said the dredging of the Nile tributaries and resumption of the digging of the Jonglei Canal was a collective effort from members of the council of ministers and not an individual project.
“The dredge of the Nile is the policy of the government. It is not individual. Brother Manawa, the pressure that happened to him in the media and in the social media is the cause of his death”, stated Machar.
He was speaking at the ex-minister’s funeral service in Juba on Thursday.
“There are people who say we want to kill animals like fish and small animals like ants but this is not true”, said Machar.
“Let us return to Jonglei canal. We do not see its negative effects. By the way, there are 2760km meters, for 40 years, dug. What will happen if you do not complete it? Are you going to close it again”? he asked.
For his part, Vice President, James Wani Igga said the project was beneficial to citizens, downplaying the negative impacts of the Nile dredging project.
“I want to correct this today because this is one of the things thrown to minister Manawa and he died of the pressure and it is confirmed”, he said.
Speaking in both English and Arabic, Igga cautioned citizens against rushing into conclusion without obtaining information backed by sciences.
Vice President Taban Deng Gai, on the other hand, argued that sediments from the Nile have blocked the free movement of barges on the long river.
“People from Warrap [state] present here like the [Chief] Justice Chan Reec know that barges used to go up to Wau. Today, barges do not go to Bentiu from Lake No because the river is closed”, he said on Thursday.
While key officials in the government appear persuaded by the displacements caused by the level of water in the low-lying areas, hydrologists argue that the dredging and resumption of the digging of the Jonglei Canal will have major effects on ecosystems of the Sudd wetland.
The Sudd is a vast swamp formed by the White Nile’s Bahr al-Jabal section. The area, which the swamp covers, is one of the largest wetlands in the Nile basin.
(ST)