PARTY CHAIRMAN & SECRETARY GENERAL RIVALRIES: AN IRREVERSIBLE STRIFE
7 min read[The Case of President Kiir and Pagan Amum]
By KON Joseph LEEK
January 21, 2015 (SSB) — I widely became aware of the strife between the two aforementioned leaders when Salva Kiir sacked the former governors of Lakes and Unity States Engineer Chol Tong Mayai [turned member of G11, now G. 10] and Gen. Taban Deng Gai [turned rebel] replacing them with Gen. Matur Chut Dhuol and Dr. Nguen Monytuil
Two days after the concurrent sacking of the above mentioned governors, Pagan Amum, then SPLM’s Secretary General of the SPLM publically showed his contention by describing it as, “breaking of constitution” by his boss, president Kiir.
He hasten wrote on his face book wall a day after Taban was decreed out that, ‘dictatorship in the making’. It is no doubts that he meant to describe Salva Kiir “a dictator” not somebody else.
If their [Kiir & Pagan] contention had long started and then cracked by Taban’s removal from gubernatorial position is something SPLM’s insiders only might know, I don’t have details there
When the crises started on DEC. 15TH 2013, it happened that Pagan with his other 10 colleagues were arrested and detained a day after as suspects of attempted coup.
The rest were later released and he [Pagan] remained under interrogation with three others until April when they were released long and white bearded; no razor blades and hair-die in detention
This is just a normal occurrence between the party’s chairmen and their secretary generals. The rivalry between the two leaders is something that goes on unabated citing examples from other African countries.
Secretary Generals who had rivalry with their bosses [party chairmen]
Two-times President Dr. Milton Obote of Uganda had problems with John Kakonga, Grace Ibringa and Felix Onama as Uganda People’s Congress [UPC] party secretary Generals
President Jomo Kenyatta of Kenya also had troubles with Kenya Africa National Union [KANU] Secretary General Tom Mboya
Zambians’ president Kenneth KAUNDA of Zambian African National Congress [ZANC] also had problems with Simon Kapwempwe
The president of Malawi Dr. Hastings Kamuzzu Banda of Malawi Congress Party [MCP] also had rivalry with kanyama Chume
J. B Danquah of United Gold Coast Convention [UGCC] also had problems with Nkwame Nkrumah which thereafter led him [Nkrumah] to form his party, Convention Peoples’ Party [CPP] after he was dismissed from UGCC
Then again is Pagan Amum of South Sudan’s SPLM and president Kiir Mayardit
And so is Ugandans’ president Yoweri Museveni Kaguta with John Patrict Amama Mbabazi as the secretary General of National Resistant Movement [NRM]
I can remember when Mbabazi’s enemies forced Museveni to call an emergency meeting for the NRM in order to force Mbabazi to relinquish one of his positions because he was at the same times the Uganda’s prime minister and the party’s [NRM] constitution says that. ‘Any one holding any sensitive post in the party should not hold any position in the government’ this was what mbabazi’s foes wanted him to explain why he was delaying to drop one position instead of holding both positions.
When Museveni called out Amama Mbabazi to come forward to explain his position after many hurdles, he [Amama] boldly stepped forward and told the NRM members that, ‘if Museveni is the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, chairman of the NRM and at the same time the president of the Republic of Uganda [all these three busy positions] and no one is complaining, and he is doing very well…. Then who am I to be rebuked for holding only two less-busy positions I held for only weeks now?’ He continued that if he should drop one of his place then the same sitting [meeting] would be fair enough if it can first ask Gen. Museveni to drop two of his positions that he held since January 1986
Every one’s eyes [especially his foes] were fumed because each was in dismay how Museveni can be told by a person of Mbabazi’s caliper to relinquish some of his positions?
It seemed like Museveni should dispute and rebuke Mbabazi’s claimed but not did he say a word, quiet as non living thing-he [MUSEVENI] was just sited head high, armed akimbo almost whistling in his chair
You can guessed what happened [the guy, Amama retained the two positions; party’s secretary General and prime minister] simply for the reason that he was in the “elephant’s ear”-no one can dare!
It was of recent [September, 2014] when he was sacked by his long-time buddy, Museveni due to his 2016’s presidential ambition to challenge MUSEVENI.
This is what is happening between Pagan Amum Okiech and Kiir Mayar kuethpiny Lual. Ambition from party’s secretary generals is always what put them at the cross-roads with their bosses
Another thing being the issue of party materials [party officials] standing for presidency and other public positions as spoils the relationship between the party chairmen and secretary generals when not amicably handled because one [SG] become a close competitor to the other [chairman] and then make it their “RING” of comparison of who is having bigger muscles than the other
That rivalry and antagonism is what goes into the government because the same party materials are the same group that runs the government and the military
Where the party has got some misunderstanding, it [misunderstanding] very fast connects into the government and military like EBOLA where it leads to confusion, madness and devastation like what happened in Dec. 2013
The complete dissociation of the party is what can save the country from the inter-links strife. The party should have the chairman who is not the president at the same times and so are other party’s top positions; they should not save in the government because of too much work in two positions one person might handle. Instead of pretending like you are doing very well in them, just drop one to other members-it is also creation of employment opportunities to others
Either the government or the party, whenever each has got bumps, they should independently resolve them without inviting others into their attention
Like Amama Mbabazi and Museveni, the president can be lured into slightly bending [they call it breaking] certain articles in the constitution when challenged by his favorite acolytes
Pagan, just like his colleagues [other party Secretary Generals] will never be a president. What he is doing is just a “normal secretary general’s phenomenon” of whimsically becoming ambitious for presidency that later leads to their dismissal, detention or banishment
When a cock or hen is being slaughtered, you see it flapping its wings. That flapping is either trying to save its self or trying to fight back its tormentor but at last, it ends up on the knife’s edge of its boss [these are our Africa’s party General Secretaries; Pagan Amum’s colleagues, and the party chairmen]
The guy [Pagan] is supposed steal from his associates [other secretary generals and learn from their mistakes] instead of thinking that him knowing party’s secrets will immediately leads to Kiir’s downfall and straight away becoming people’s favorite; those wishful thinking are dangerous to one’s political health, they only malnourish your political ambitions
Never in a million years sir, like other aforementioned Secretary Generals will you become a president if you are using a pride of being the party’s secretary general a tool of lobbying for presidency by blackmailing president Kiir that he is corrupt, tribalist and so on, and you are the angel-where does that leave you?……. If I look into the list of the top 75 most corrupt government officials now, I believe I can’t miss to see your name.
Unless you soften your heart and look harder into yourself and the nation, you will never be a president.
Instead of being honest and clean, you are being controversial and confusing; in order to be the Pagan we will love as we used to, bring back the old Pagan we knew, pre-independence Pagan in you, that is the better Pagan, and this you [Pagan] which is thriving and germinating in you [old Pagan] is really just surprising us….. Unless you explain yourself, I am one of the many who believes that independence has changed you
However, what is now happening between the two is just a normal phenomenon between a secretary General and the chairman of the party.
The writer is a commentator on Contemporary South Sudan. He can be reached on j.konleek@gmail.com & 0955091449
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