S. Sudan president urges citizens to embrace collective vision
July 10, 2017 (JUBA)- South Sudan president Salva Kiir has urged the country’s citizens to choose patriotism, embrace unity and pursue common vision instead of placing individual vision and interests above that of the nation.
“We have the power to bring about change that will benefit and develop this nation, the country that we all dreamed to have and cherish. We must embrace a collective vision, and more importantly we must have the courage to pursue it by all means,” said Kiir.
The South Sudanese leader said South Sudanese do not regret their choice to secede from Sudan despite their differences that still needed to be resolved.
“Six years into our independence, many critics have questioned whether it was wise for the people of South Sudan to choose independence, simply because we have not been able to solve our differences amicably. Our answer to these critics is that the people of South Sudan do not regret their decision. I am confident that if the referendum for independence were to be held again today, the people of South Sudan would still choose to be free,” Kiir said in a speech repeatedly broadcast by the state owned SSBC.
Kiir admitted that the course the country took after independence has not been smooth, but accepts that the task of nation building ‘takes time, commitment, dedication and stability.’
“It is not a process that happens overnight. Together, we embarked on this journey of managing politics and implementing state bureaucracy,” said Kiir.
He said many people, were pessimistic when the National Dialogue was first launched but in the last two months it has gained support both internally and in the international community.
“It is therefore incumbent upon all of us; both government and opposition, to let the national dialogue succeed,” stressed Kiir.
South Sudan broke away from its northern neighbour in July 2011 after 98% of its population overwhelmingly voted for separation in a referendum held in January that year. However, two years after South Sudan gained independence from Sudan, President Kiir accused his former vice president Riek Machar of allegedly plotting a coup against his regime, triggering the violence that has killed thousands of people.
Also, a peace deal signed in August 2015 collapsed amid renewed violence outbreak that has displaced millions of people into neighbouring countries.
(ST)