Lakes state military caretaker governor faces legal battle in court

October 22, 2014 (RUMBEK) – A Rumbek North MP has filed a legal case against Lakes state’s military caretaker governor, Maj-Gen Matur Chut Dhuol, claiming he unlawfully confiscated land.

Daniel Deng Monydit told Sudan Tribune that Dhuol or his legal advisor is due to appear in court to defend the allegations, which relate to the seizure of homes occupied by intellectuals in June in Rumbek.

Monydit is well-known in Lakes state for his combat role in the South’s 22-year struggle for independence.

Monydit has accused Dhuol of spiralling Lakes state into chaos and of being unwilling to listen or appreciate the advice from intellectuals.

“For Lakes state to be peaceful we need to remove Matur Chut [Dhuol],” he said.

“Matur took my properties since he became a governor of Lakes state and now I have hired a lawyer, Monyluak Alor, to explore legal avenues unless Matur choose the better way of settling the issue without going to court,” he added. In

Dhuol earlier denied that the houses had been seized unlawfully, saying the properties belonged to the state government before they were occupied by intellectuals.

POLICE WARNING TO PASTORALISTS

In a separate report, Lakes state police inspector Isaac Mayuom warned pastoralists against resisting the upcoming disarmament process.

Mayuom told a news conference said that plans for the disarmament campaign had been laid out by the state government with support from the central government, headed by the minister of interior.

He said the comprehensive process would be carried out jointly by police and military forces across Lakes state’s eight counties, but did not elaborate on when the campaign would start in Rumbek.

Mayuom has claimed that the security situation in Rumbek has remained stable for almost a week.

“The situation in Rumbek town is clam and everyone is happy,” he said, adding “cooperation within the state government has been restored and trust is most required from [the] state community on the upcoming disarmament”.

Activists, however, dispute the claims, accusing the colonel of spreading false information in order to protect his position.

Activist Moses Majok said that a man was killed on Wednesday in Cueiadukan in a suspected revenge attack. No-one has been arrested in connection to the incident.

“We know that [the] state government insists on telling baseless words to [the] public on state radio,” he said.

“It is just on Wednesday when a person was killed in Cueiadukan and [the] government is very silent,” he added.

Meanwhile, Mayuom urged pastoralists to surrender their arms peacefully ahead of the disarmament process.

“The state government asks each pastoralist to surrender their arms without delay before organised forces are permitted to use force on those refusing to surrender their arms,” he said.

The Rumbek community has complained that police and military forces deployed inside the town routinely seize mobile phones from the public.

Mayuom has strongly denied the claims, describing them as a fabrication.

(ST)