Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
By James Okuk
January 26, 2010 — In his Monday 25th January 2010 remarks over the issue of SPLA uniform in civilian affairs of Southern Sudan, Salva Kiir confirmed that he is already a retired general, but he did not explain why he still wears military uniform and how he got promoted (or rather how he promoted himself) to the rank of 1st Lt. General in the army. Mr. SPLA Spokesman who is also related to the Abyei Minister in the GoSS tried to give explanation of this anomalie on behalf of Kiir saying:”I want to show to the public that 1st Lt-Gen Salva Kiir Mayardit was retired with effect from July 16, 2005 by late General Dr. John Garang De Mabior; also on 26/7/2005 Comrade late Commander-in-Chief wrote a message to all units of the SPLA in which he related that Commander Salva Kiir Mayardit had acceded to the rank of Lieutenant General with effect from May 2004 and retired with the rank of 1st Lieutenant General with effect from July 16, 2005… But being a retired general does not mean that you have to throw away your uniform – Kiir wears his military uniform on a ceremonial basis.” Really and what a funny game!!!!
Surely, those contradicting and dull statements from Kiir defendants from Abyei gentlemen who are never going to vote in the South for Kiir in 11 – 13 April 2010 are opening unnecessary Pandora Boxes of the dishonest SPLA generals who have been wearing military uniforms and titles illegally both privately and publicly without public attention of their dishonesty since then.
Now, the democratic procedures and principles have exposed badly the SPLM leaders who at the same time pretend to be the SPLA top commanders. Even now people have started to doubt the legality and legitimacy of the SPLA military titles worn by some SPLM ranks and files (including the SPLA Spokesman), especially if they were promoted by the illegal SPLA 1st Lt. General who sneaked into the army to take the front seat without notice since 2005. Their promotion could be regarded legally as null and void because it was done by a civilian who kept his old military uniform for ceremonial purposes. But saying that the green SPLA uniform (with stars, scissors and eagles) that the people have been witnessing on Kiir and the military title he has been addressed with all these five years in the media houses are just for “ceremonial” purposes, doesn’t fair on well with honesty and moral turpitude. What a lawless semi-autonomous Southern Sudan under Kiir rule!!! My intelligence is much disturbed now by too much and too dull contradicting statements and bizarre arguments from the so-called born to rule.
With this affirmation from Kiir’s very mouth witnessed by the Chairman of High Elections Committee of Southern Sudan in Juba and broadcasted in media outlets, no doubt, the outgoing GoSS President and the company have hanged themselves politically as far as one of the conditions for nominees of the GoSS highest civil seat is concerned. According to the National Elections Commission (NEC)’s contestants nomination conditions: any person shall be eligible for nomination as a candidate for the office of President of the GoSS in accordance with the provisions of the Interim Constitution, provided that he/she shall satisfy the following qualifications: a) be a Sudanese (‘by birth’ has been removed); b) be of sound mind; c) be at least forty years of age; d) be literate; and e) not have been convicted of an offence involving honesty or moral turpitude. Mr. Kiir may go through the first four requirements but he will be in trouble with the fifth one because of the “dishonesty issue” here regarding his illegal wearing of a uniform of one of the sovereign elements of the state, the army.
The incumbent GoSS President, 1st Lt. Gen. Salva Kiir warned that he would appeal to a court of law in case of any disqualification and expressed confidence that he would also win the case. Very good sign of respect to the rule of law from the illegal SPLA 1st Lt. General’s rhetoric!!! I hope his dull advisors shall not tell him to appeal in a Martial Court, far from civilian court of law. I can read and sense that Kiir feels already defeated by civilian law as he forecasts the opposite.
It is good also that Kiir told his supporters not to resort to violence if things did not work for their favour regarding the elections process and results. They should accept Kiir to go home peacefully once he loses the elections process or outcome to the winner, Dr. Lam Akol Ajawain, the next best possible president of the GoSS who shall take South Sudan into the Promised Land as the inevitable independence approaches nearly to the beloved people of the South.
The Sudanese Electoral Law requires that any candidate aspiring to contest for any public office while serving in the military must resign first in order to qualify to run for the elections. This also applies to those that work as civil servants or judges. Even if Hon. Judge Abel Alier wrote secretly to Kiir, comforting him in his illegal SPLA military uniform, still the constitutional law shall not get below the feet of My Lord, Hon. Abel Alier, because legal provisions regarding this issue are very clear and definite. “After going through the relevant constitutional and legal provisions and the advice on the same, on nominations by candidates, I have come to the conclusion that the office of Commander-in-Chief is not an army post. It belongs to the head of state as an aspect of sovereignty. In the case of the President of the Government of Southern Sudan, it is also an aspect of shared sovereignty,” Alier said in his letter. However, other legal and constitutional experts may challenge Hon. Abel Alier if he tries to make the law applicable impartially and with exceptions when it comes to Mr. Salva Kiir candidacy. Any impartial law is not a just law and should be repealed with courage irrespective of who is who.
The logic here is that every elections candidate should be given an equal chance to compete on the same leveled ground and with the same rules of game like anybody else, whether he is an aspirant or an incumbent President of the GoSS. That is why it follows immediately after the candidate has been cleared and approved by the NEC that he/she gets relived from constitutional immunities or any other immunities that could block possible law suits. Thus, Kiir and the company should get reminded too that not only the “military thing” but also the “immunity and attached privileges things” shall come up soon on all the candidates during the campaign period. They will not be allowed to use public facilities and privileges for elections campaigns. Every contestant is supposed to rely on his own facilities. Kiir is not and should not get exempted here.
Dr. James Okuk is reachable at [email protected]
kuminyandi
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
Dear Dr. Okuk,
I believed you’re the concerned citizen of Southern Sudan. You have right to sue whoever you feel broke the law of Southern Sudan. Therefore, you can go ahead and sue Salva Kiir in the court of law. I think you have the academic background that fit the requirement of suing public officials. The outlook will be amazing. So go ahead don’t be afraid.
Kumi,
Aturjok
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
Okuk,
What is preventing you from suing Salva Kiir? You should do so instead of talking about it.
Cheer!
~Aturjok
mssk
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
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Sudan virus
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
Okuk don’t fanic.
braveheart
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
Okuk,
Great article, you always ahead of the curve. I agree that Kiir needs to be “impeached” for dishonesty and violation of other acts including SPLA Act of 2006/7. But this impeachment needs to spearheaded by the chairman of SouthSudan Legislative Assembly, Mr Igga, and other head-organ of Judicial Instituion in the south. Do you think those Igga will be in supportive such just action? If not, could this sprung other unaccountablility in GOSS official not doing their job fairly or serving the interest of their public constitutiency?
Look forward to your comments.
Braveheart
Concerned resettled refugee in exile.
Lorolokin
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
Okuk you look too much Tribalist because you favour Lam Akol other than Kiir Himself.Let me remind you that Lam will not test the fruits of Southern Sudan presidency believe me brother. Lam has killed many people and still continuing to kill including his own people,how on earth can that be?
Kinkak.
Peace Lover
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
Dog Okuk,
Please inform your families to post on the ST where the Funeral will take place after your death. Why don’t you sued Al- Bashir first? You still have enough time do’nt worry. What I can say that Suing Al-Bashir means you are suing your DOGs Akol. Stop playing games with the innocent southerners who nothing about politic. Go to hell DOG. JAmes Okuk.
Keep talking and writing from America my friend but it not a solution for your idiots mentality.
Suing Salva like digging you own grave. Try if you really DR.OKUK.
DengDit Ayok
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
You must be joking Dr. Okuk!
The immortal heavenly beings cannot file a suit against Sir Mayardit; leave alone the earthly mortal human beings.
Sir Mayardit did not commit any wrong thing against the law to be sued in the court of law.
It is not true that Sir Salva Kiir Mayardit has reinstated himself into the army after he was retired by the late Dr. John Garang de Mabior.
In fact, it is not Kiir that has reinstated himself into the army; it is the SPLM Constitution that had appointed him to be the President of the GoSS and C-in-C of the SPLA.
Furthermore, the Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan states that the GoSS President is to be the C-in-C of the army.
There is nothing wrong in this and there is no dishonesty here Dr. Okuk.
Kiir was to lead South Sudan after the untimely tragic death of Dr. Garang in a helicopter crash.
Your argument that Sir Mayardit should be sued for dishonesty because he had reinstated himself into the army as you alleged has no room here because he did not reinstated himself into the army on his own mood, but he was reinstated into the army by the SPLM after the death of John Garang.
You ought to notice here that many changes had happened within the Movement after the death of Dr. John Garang.
One of the major changes that had happened is that some resolutions made by Dr. John Garang when he was alive were nullified by the new man that took over the leadership of the Movement after the death of John Garang.
Sir Mayardit was the right person to take the leadership of the Movement and be the C-in-C of the SPLA after the death of our hero Dr. John Garang de Mabior.
What is wrong here Dr. Okuk? Should Sir Salva Kiir Mayardit be taken to court of law because he became the C-in-C of the SPLA, not on his own will, but on the will of the SPLM which had appointed him to take all the responsibilities that Dr. Garang was carrying out?
Review your argument brother.
Dr. Lam Akol Ajawin whom you have described in one of your articles published on this site as “the inevitable president of GoSS” for this year (2010) will not win the elections in the South, not because he is incompetent, but because he had played a very treacherous role against the just cause of the people of Southern Sudan.
So, therefore, Dr. Okuk, Dr. Big Traitor Lam Akol the son of Ajawin will not win the elections in Southern Sudan in the present time and in any other time. He would have been a good leader for Southern Sudan but he has damaged himself beyond repair.
Traitors should not rule the people which they had downplayed in hard times.
Dengdit Ayok
Khartoum, Sudan
Al Noor
Kiir should be sued for dishonestly
The title of commander-in-chief is bestowed on the overall commander of a state’s military forces; a state’s commander-in-chief needn’t be a military man or woman, as the title is not a military rank. For example, US President Obama is the commander-in-chief of the US armed forces because he is the head of the government of the USA; HM Queen Elizabeth II (the British monarch) is the commander-in-chief of the Canadian military by virtue of her position as head of state; Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme cleric, is the commander-in-chief of the Islamic Republic of Iran and not President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. What all of these examples illustrate is that a nation’s commander-in-chief has constitutional power over that state’s military forces, and that the post is not necessarily held by a military person. In practice, however, the day-to-day command and control of a state’s military rests in the hands of the chief of staff: a professional military person. The head of state appoints the minister of defense as well as the chief of staff.
In the case of the government of Southern Sudan, the Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan says this about the president and commander-in-chief: Art. 111(1): Prior to the elections that shall be held during the Interim Period, the Chairman of the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement, or his successor, shall be the President of the Government of Southern Sudan and Commander-in-Chief of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army in accordance with this Constitution.
SPLM chairman, Salva Kiir Mayardit, is according to this the commander-in-chief of the SPLA. Nowhere does the Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan make explicit or implicit reference to the fact that the commander-in-chief of the SPLA should be the chief of staff of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army.
With regard to the command and control of the SPLA, the Interim Constitution of Southern Sudan has this to say: Art. 156(1): Command and control of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army shall vest in the President of the Government of Southern Sudan as its Commander-in-Chief, assisted by the Chief of Staff, his or her deputies and other staff officers.
Art. 156(2): The President of the Government of Southern Sudan and Commander-in-Chief of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army shall commission, promote, retire or dismiss officers of the Sudan People’s Liberation Army according to the law.
The everyday command and control of the SPLA is in the hands of the chief of staff and his or her deputies, but the overall command rests with the commander-in-chief, who’s the president of the government of Southern Sudan. The commander-in-chief can commission, promote and dismiss members of the SPLA.
The National Elections Act of 2008 forbids active military personnel from becoming candidates in the elections. The post of commander-in-chief of the SPLA is, as Mr. Abel Alier had stated in his letter to presidential candidate Kiir Mayardit, not a military rank. This is the concern of the electoral commission. If Mr. Kiir gave proof that he was retired from the army, there is nothing the electoral commission could do to stop him from electioneering.
As Dr. Okuk rightly pointed out, Sudan’s National Election Commission had drawn up a set of rules to govern the elections at all levels of government. Dr. Okuk went on to make specific reference to Art. 41(1.e) of the elections act as the most plausible reason for disqualifying Mr. Kiir’s presidential bid. The article which Dr. Okuk used to explain his viewpoint states that a candidate for a presidential or gubernatorial post must “not have been convicted of an offence involving honesty or moral turpitude.”
Of course, Dr. Okuk believes that GoSS presidential candidate Salva Kiir should be disqualified from running, because the candidate has dishonestly been wearing green SPLA uniform and used the military title since he assumed his role as GoSS President and commander-in-chief of the SPLA. Does this perception alone amount to dishonesty and moral turpitude? Not exactly, because the electoral law stipulates that the candidate must not be CONVICTED of a crime involving dishonesty or moral turpitude. I believe Dr. Okuk knows that to “convict” someone of a crime or misdemeanor is to condemn that person by a competent court. Judging from Dr. Okuk’s written response, it seems abundantly clear that there is no love lost between him and Mr. Kiir, but like it or not, GoSS presidential candidate Kiir has not been convicted by a competent court of law for dishonesty or moral turpitude as he handed his papers to the electoral commission. Does Jacob Zuma come to mind? He was taken to court by his opponents, but was not convicted, and therefore cleared to launch his campaign for president of South Africa.
Hence, all the electoral commission may do in this regard is to apply article 41(2), which states that the electoral commission may request such evidence as it deems necessary of the qualifications specified in the Elections Act 2008.
True, there could be some in the SPLA who had acquired their present ranks dishonestly, but that is another issue for the Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly, and more importantly the SPLA. After all, it could be argued that the SPLA – which is now transforming itself into a fully conventional military institution – was a non-conventional military organization that has until recently used titles such as “commander”, “alternate commander” etc.
What does Dr. Okuk’s perception that the “outgoing GoSS President and the company have hanged themselves politically as far as one of the conditions for nominees of the GoSS highest civil seat is concerned” mean in practice? I can’t tell, because I don’t know if Dr. Okuk also believes that President Al-Bahir should be disqualified from running for president of Sudan. For President Omer Al-Bashir has very recently donned his military fatigue weeks after retiring himself from the army. Besides, the state-run Sudan TV and many government-sanctioned newspapers have continued to address the Sudanese president “Field Marshall”. To illustrate, read the following:
? Field Marshall Omer Al-Bashir Addresses Mass Rally in Khartoum North
Khartoum, Jan. 13 (SUNA) – President of the Republic, Field Marshal Omer Al-Bashir, pledged that the coming presidential and parliamentary elections will be fair and honest.
? Field Marshal Omar al-Bashir, President of the Republic, tells the army to deter anyone who tries to undermine the soil of the homeland (Source: Al-Nilen, 27-01-2010).
? President Al-Bashir attends airborne troop training
Addressing a ceremony to mark the launch of training of paratroopers, President Al-Bashir who appeared in uniform weeks after stepping down from an army post, said SAF is the safety valve and guarantor of security, stability, peace and development in the country. He said the forthcoming period would witness further development of the army (Source: Al-Akhbar, Jan 2010).
More on: http://alraed-sd.com/portal/permalink/22422.html
http://www.rayaam.info/News_view.aspx?pid=511&id=38372
It will be interesting to see what the electoral body has to say about all the highly charged political drama that is slowly coming to light, without an air of favoritism.