No excuse to boycott the upcoming elections

By Isaiah Abraham

May 15, 2009 — There has been an ominous voice in the air that suggests that some members of the SPLM party are cracking a plan behind the scene to ensure that the slated upcoming general election in February next year is boycotted. They are hatching a protest in what they called the NCP manipulation of the 5Th Census results that projected Southern Sudan to be 8 million people.

Where did I get this? Mr. Pagan Amum the SPLM Secretary General came public couple of days ago and announced that the results didn’t reflect the true picture of the Southern Sudan population and that the Presidency wasn’t in agreement. He further questioned the presidency decision to passed it and claimed that the President of the Government of the Southern Sudan H. E. Gen. Salva Kiir Mayardit wasn’t satisfied.

Query and deduction, just not to waste your time: Mr. Amum isn’t a member of the Presidency, who has talked to him about the dissatisfaction within the Presidency when President Kiir never came out open, say to the media? The answer could be that perhaps President Kiir himself has voluntarily confided in him; if that is so, then there is a problem and the problem is this: why didn’t the SPLM leader come out clearly to everybody, especially to the presidency members and reject the results outright? Who made him silence there and makes him rejects the results here? But what does this say about the collective responsibility obligation we all know?

You see, this isn’t the first time for this party to chicken out of responsibility, we had enough of similar blunders that are only meant to portray the NCP on the negative. We are constantly made to perceive that the NCP is always on the wrong and we always right, even when its not the case. Someone wants us to sing after him “its the NCP who did it” everyday, and this pattern of habit must be put to test if not to stop. President Isaias Aferwoki of Eritrea on his visit to earlier Juba last humbly adviced Southern leaders to content with what they can afford and stop point fingering to their partners in the government. That holds true. There are issues that are open to negotiation and gravy ones that are not subject to compromise; Negotiations have been proved to be effective, but boycott. Points of disagreement shall always be there, no matter what, but its upon us to wedge them or narrow.

What we have been saying in many words as came above is this: the Southern leadership or the SPLM for that matter must make use of this partnership with the NCP to the full, and not spoil it. We have an objective to accomplish and a sense of duty call in our time to carry it out to the end. There is no way we should get everything 100% all the time when the circumstances do not make it possible. Our peace partners, the NCP are unique characters in their approaches and this should be exploited maximumly. President Kiir is mindful about it, to his best credit but his company aren’t, especially the self righteous and self-proclaimed saviours of the country in that party top echelon.

But what do people really think is happening within the SPLM party that make them plot an about turn (boycott of an election? Well, some say the party intention is to weaken the NCP in every way possible even if that is through mere smearing, so as to gain a political leverage against them- something familiar to any political party. Others yet tend to think that the outcome of that election is already known; the NCP is winning and therefore unnecessary to contest the election altogether. Internally furthermore the party has a leadership problem as to who to contest for Khartoum seat and who to remain the South. By boycott they would underscore an option to avoid troubles out of this crisis. Generally the party has warmed itself on the ruling and don’t want to let it go. They might be wrong or wrong, there is no comment.

Refusing to go to election however isn’t the right thing to do. The Census Results can not warrant us to boycott the upcoming election, if we could that reason in its face value; we can’t afford losing out in the democratic rewards, we should be the heads not the tails in this important exercise; it will be irresponsibility, abdication and a mistake on our side. Someone else should go opposite not us.

Initially, the wealth and the power that become so sweet now aren’t our ultimate goals, aren’t they? We never make use of them after all but disappointment. But in reality, the NCP didn’t do anything wrong in the Census and Housing counts, designers of the CPA are. May be we didn’t do our work well too. The count wasn’t carried out conclusively and satisfactorily besides those unavoidable circumstances at that time. There is nothing the NCP would do to change things at the moment, we better close this matter and move on to election. The NCP has started doing their strategies to win that election and the SPLM should do something to catch them up by supporting the initiative of the National Election Commission (NEC), on its drive to register people and parties, acquisition of voting materials, cards and recruitment of staff members among others.

Look at this: the underground move by SPLM party to boycott the upcoming election isn’t out of the blue, its Chairman seems uninterested or at least hasn’t shown it publicly. May be he is! If that could be the reason then what is the point of harassing the environment when the leader isn’t prepare or about to go for it? We can’t afford to quarrel in the middle of nowhere on petty matters now, it will be too much for everybody! The focus for 2011 again stands out as an unfinished business, saved for those who came out to say they are for the unity (Mr. Amum is in record on this and lead the group). Curse be unto them in our land!

The SPLM should tell other Sudanese not Southerners (Southerners see no immediate benefit there) why they are the best. Let’s hear the SPLM Chairman from his own mouth what he wants to do with that job and how he wants to do things for the Sudan. Southerners shall do the same to the man they know best in his action not just in too much words and empty talks. Formal speeches don’t bring out characters, interaction in public rallies do. In another word, Gen. Kiir has to start talking, he has been speaking. By the former we shall know his attitudes, characters and behaviours- politicians aren’t economical with themselves and am being fooled by this man- they are called ‘good liars’ and indeed it fits them. Whereas by speaking alone make him mechanical, cosmetic and artificial to many-its repulsive and undesirable.

Having gone that long, we must finish by asking the following questions? If the SPLM presses ahead and boycotted the general elections, will that change anything/what in Khartoum? How about the South, are we prepare to have the same face of Finance Minister by next year this time about to oversees our money? What of the unpopular governors in the states of Eastern Equatoria and Western Upper Nile, what will the public say about the party they all ascribed in to it? How about the legitimacy question to members of houses, do the people really view our members with respect at the moment- we know how these men/women were selected for the houses, don’t we? But also, how long shall the South be held hostage by SPLM unionists and ‘friends’ Darfur rebels? Wasn’t it not the Darfuris SAF commanding officer in Malakal in July 2007 who shed tears while handing over the barrack keys to the SPLA General, Gen. Marial Chinuor?

Oh! Our Big Day, the 16 May is here; as we remember that heroic act in that day, unless we forget, let’s give accreditation to a Southerner behind it and that man in non other than Major Kerubino Kuanyin Boll; that is his moment of glory, worth our attributes! Ma Al Salama

Isaiah Abraham is based in Southern Sudan; he is reachable at [email protected]