SPLM’s uncoordinated efforts a waste of time and resources
By Gatkuoth Deng
September 14, 2009 – The people of South Sudan in particular and of the marginalized parts of Sudan in general are made to believe that the ruling political party in the South, the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM), has been exerting its utmost efforts to transform Sudan for the better in the course of implementing the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA). Unfortunately that seems not to be the case as I write.
In order to effect a meaningful change, or call it transformation of the Sudan from its old unjust system to a free, just and democratic political environment, a number of old Sudan laws have to be repealed and new ones enacted. And this is in accordance with the CPA.
A mechanism has already been set up by the CPA partners to address these issues using the combination of the parties’ partnership platform (SPLM and NCP) and the executive and legislative organs of the Government of National Unity (GONU). But is the SPLM coordinating its efforts among these three forums? No, to the best of my observation, it is not! Is the resistant and reluctant NCP doing a good coordination to thwart SPLM’s efforts? Yes, it is! And that is exactly the cause of my serious concern.
At the SPLM party level where proposed laws are initially drafted during debates with the NCP, it is Dr. Riek Machar who spearheads it. After finishing the drafts they are presented to the GONU Council of Ministers where our dear President Salva Kiir Mayardit is supposed to be seated as the heavy weight by the virtue of his being the First Vice President of the whole country and Chairman of the SPLM. After the bills are passed by the cabinet then they finally go to the National Assembly where Yasser Arman, as the head of the SPLM Caucus in the parliament plus his other colleagues defend the bills and make sure they are endorsed in a way that addresses the party’s concerns.
Disappointingly, such a coordination is not well established by the SPLM; an advantage well utilized by the NCP. I was shocked again to read Yasser Arman complaining that the recently passed National Security Bill in the GONU cabinet meeting was not the same draft jointly agreed upon by the SPLM and NCP at the level of the two parties’ forum. Arman said that as a result the SPLM would distance itself from such a bill. What? Will the party solve the problem by just distancing itself from it or does it need a decision to withdraw it? The same SPLM complained also some months back that the Press and Publication bill that was passed by the cabinet was not the draft the two parties jointly agreed to. Look at the repetition! That did not either prevent the draft from finding its way into the parliament for endorsement as it came. Why are SPLM leaders acting like reactionaries and not proactive?
What is SPLM really up to? Does the SPLM really and truly want to transform the Sudan at the national level? I could sense that both Dr. Riek Machar and Yasser Arman are doing their very best at the Party and Assembly levels, respectively. The problem is mostly with our President and party chairman Salva Kiir Mayardit. If he had to be present in the cabinet meetings in Khartoum, the NCP might not have been playing with the drafts with ease. As the second powerful man in the country, Kiir would have blocked discussions on such bills if they were not the ones jointly agreed by Dr. Machar’s committee with Ali Osman Taha. He would have suspended the discussions and thrown out the bill until the original final draft is brought in to the cabinet. Without him the NCP simply plays games by presenting its party’s original proposal. The SPLM cabinet members should straight away reject it and show the original copy of the final jointly agreed draft. Or suspend the discussions for further honest presentation to the cabinet.
As I wonder my question is why is Salva Kiir not carrying out such an important constitutional duty bestowed upon him by his people and party? Mr. Chairman, going to Khartoum and rushing back to Juba in two days once a month is not enough to make changes in Khartoum. Beshir is happy that you have abandoned your powers in Khartoum with Ali Osman. Without you in the cabinet meetings that discuss such important bills needed for the transformation, the party should expect that the NCP will always play around with the bills. People like Deng Alor in the cabinet will just helplessly coil their tails as they keep quiet and watch the NCP’s Beshir and Taha sitting on the top leadership table and passing resolutions that will harm the interest of the SPLM. The party badly needs a heavy weight in the cabinet. Or what was the so-called Presidency all about? Does the SPLM Political Bureau really think about this vacuum created in Khartoum?
Working as a team that coordinates activities is very important during this critical time. In the minutes of the Rumbek meeting in 2004, which I read in the article posted by brother Tut Gatwech, Salva Kiir himself and most of the leaders now running the SPLM affairs were accusing the late Chairman, Dr. John Garang of not working with people as a team. Is Salva Kiir not doing the same currently? Despite the vote of no confidence on him, I believe Dr. Garang would have understood the importance of attending the cabinet meetings in Khartoum in order to get his policy through.
The SPLM Political Bureau should understand that there is no other better way to bring about the vision of the New Sudan unless through transformation using new laws in the country. This needs active participation of the Chairman. And even if the SPLM has given up on this New Sudan vision, there is still need to transform this would-be neighboring country (North) into a democratic and peaceful law abiding nation so that it would not give South Sudan a lot of headache should we become independent. Transformation of Khartoum is good for the future of both separatists and unionists alike.
However, this SPLM’s failure to coordinate activities in the person of the chairman himself raises more questions than answers. Why waste time of other party leaders and our resources with these expensive movements between Khartoum and Juba that only result to uncoordinated efforts that are finally discarded in the Khartoum cabinet?
With this weak attitude, the SPLM leadership is giving chance to people like Dr. Lam Akol to believe that its leadership is just comprised of a bunch of pretenders without commitment on their vision and mission. Do something about this SPLM top leadership; otherwise you are disappointing your members like myself as well as other supporters and sympathizers.
The author lives in USA and can be reached at: [email protected]