SSOA Must Capitalize on Change in Leadership to Create Significance
By Moses Garang
The South Sudan Opposition Alliance has not lived up to the billing it carried at the onset of the implementation of the peace agreement in South Sudan.
It looked such a massive force that they inevitably wouldn’t go without being accorded one of the highest offices on the land, a deputy executive of South Sudan, or Vice Presidency as such.
With the numbers of parties involved, that should have been an alliance to reckon with when it comes to rooting for complete implementation of the peace agreement in South Sudan.
The people behind the alliance were those you wouldn’t feel like crossing paths with, especially when they were still in active opposition. But that seems to have all gone away with everyone now in government.
Vice President Hussein Abdelbagi Ayii leads them in the Transitional Government of National Unity, and it seems his leadership has created divided opinions among the group, turning costly on them in instances and as it stands, the best option maybe digging into their files and ranks for a better leadership quality.
Luck always hits and for them, they can easily find one in Costello Garang Riny Lual.
Vice President Abdelbagi was the all trusted man, seen as the omnipotent, respected to a high degree within the alliance and expected to largely foster the interest of SSOA in the Transitional Government of National Unity.
SSOA never hesitated to pick him up when they were asked by the peace agreement to produce a Vice President material, and they seconded Vice President Abdelbagi without hesitation when his name was mentioned.
Lamentations and calamity now rock the alliance as VP Abdelbagi has abrogated all interest in them, turing away from the plans and programs that SSOA expected him to foster and rather is in bed with his new found power and money.
ABOUT COSTELLO GARANG RINY LUAL
Costello Garang Riny Lual is a veteran of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army, and one that comes with high marks of gentlemanliness and integrity. A man of his words, calm, cool and mature, he stands out as a leader that people would love to work with. Basically he is a gift for SSOA, and they know it. Maybe they are keeping him as the alliance’s golden bullet in waiting to deliver at the best time? Yes, and what if the alliance decides to go bloc into the elections? Costello Garang Riny Lual would be the best man to take up the leadership in place of VP Abdelbagi.
Costello Garang Riny Lual is a South Sudanese politician. He was born on the 15th of May 1953 in the town of Aweil in Bahr el-Ghazal, which is part of the present Lol State. As the son of a leading Dinka Traditional Leader, the late Executive Paramount Chief of Greater Ayat, Ring Lual Dau, he has held numerous posts in the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement/Army (SPLM/A) since its formation in 1983, as well as being Chairman of the New Sudan Foundation and the White Nile Foundation. For the latter, he has been particularly active in the fields of international co-operation and economic development.
In contrast, VP Abdelbagi can only pride in luck for the position he holds, having been picked by President Salva Kiir with the hope that he would deliver.
He is one of the vice presidents of South Sudan, also from Northern Bahr el Ghazal. Born in the late 1960s to the politically influential Malual Dinka tribal leader Sultan Abdelbagi Akol, VP Abdelbagi however didn’t partake directly into his father’s footsteps, or was that influential in the liberation of South Sudan.
His shots at vying for leadership has been with the gun, taking up the role of the Chief of General Staff of the South Sudan Patriotic Army, which became part of the South Sudan Opposition Alliance. He and Costello Garang Riny Lual were leaders in the SSPM/A, but in August, 2018, the SSPM/A split, with Abdelbagi, out of greed, creating a faction that claimed to have removed Costello Garang Riny Lual. In July, 2019, the SSPM/A faction of Costello Garang Riny Lual claimed to remove Abdelbagi from office. He then became the speaker of the South Sudan Opposition Alliance faction led by Gabriel Changson Chang after it split in November 2018.
As part of the unity government deal the SSOA was allowed to pick one out of the five vice presidents. They however failed to decide on a vice president, so they authorized President Salva Kiir to pick from a list of six leaders. On February 23, 2020, Kiir picked Abdelbagi, making him the fifth vice president.
That is how VP Abdelbagi rode on luck to reach where he is currently. Without plans for the country, without programs for development, he found himself in charge of the Service Cluster, a huge sector and greatly important for the development of the country. Under his stewardship or so, that sector is limping, with the country’s healthcare or education systems being some of the worst in the world.
VP Abdelbagi has not taken time to advocate for revamping of the service delivery sector but has rather lived lavishly while the transitional government still keeps him as a Vice President.
SSOA however can still reign in. since they continue to have faces like Costello Garang Riny Lual, all therefore is not lost. In case the elections are coming and SSOA expects to run as a block, they are good to go with him.
Basically, Costello Garang Riny Lual is known as a man who leads with a purpose, and his purpose always centers on success. He has been massively hailed as a great leader within the SPLM/A movement and attracts a lot of respect from the leadership in South Sudan.
Moses Garang is a concerned citizen and resident of Northern Bahr El Ghazal State. He can be reached on [email protected]