Why Agel Ring Machar Defected to Riek Machar’s Camp
5 min readBy John Masura (hot in juba)
March 25, 2015 (SSB) — Mr. Agel Ring Macar on 24th March 2015 surprised most of us when he declared through Dinka Radio in Australia that he has defected from the government and joined Riek Machar’s rebellion which has for the past one year refused to find a name for themselves but clung to the SPLM and SPLA names.
One wonders why a sudden change of heart by one time a strong and vocal supporter of president Salva Kiir. He once accused gospel musician Manasseh Mathiang in an online debate of being the worst ‘rebel’ and swore to never join a rebellion that has no cause.
Agel left due to what he described as, “disappointment with the current leadership of President Salva Kiir Mayardit.”
“I have come to welcome HE LT. General Salva Kiir Mayardit, the legitimate president of South Sudan and a peace loving man who has never betrayed the cause of our people.” Agel said this on SSTV in August 2014 when a crowd of Kiir supporters turned up at JIA to welcome him back from USA where he had attended US – Africa summit. I think the video is somewhere in SSTV’s archives.
I took it upon myself to explain here why I think Agel joined Riek.
Background to Agel Ring’s Defection
Agel Ring Machar is a son of the well known member of parliament and a medical assistant Victoria Adhar Arop who helped many unaccompanied minors in Dimmo Refugee between 1986-91.
Agel Ring Machar was last year featured in a documentary about his life called ‘Were Rebels’.
Agel’s story of child soldier returning to South Sudan was told. But in real sense Agel was never a child soldier, he spent most of his life in Kakuma and Nairobi before moving to Australia.
In the documentary, “We were rebels” Agel appeared as national basketball team captain. He was never captain or a coach of national basketball team which participated in a match against Uganda on Independence Day in July 2011. Though with no skills, he played in the game on independence day which South Sudan lost because his uncle Achuil Bangol is a board member for the team.
Agel used to date the daughter of the president until, Adut Salva dumped him for Ethiopian boyfriend because the first family was allegedly concerned about his alcoholic and violent behaviors.
Agel was placed at the helm of their clan’s non governmental organisation called Sudan Production Aid (SUPRAID) which was funded by various international donors. Acuil founded the organisation in 90s during the Sudan civil war. The organisation was was based in his native county of Twic in Warrap where it supported local population in providing agricultural tools and dug boreholes in the villages for the locals.
In 2001 the organisation established a local sporting activities called Twic Olympics and it successfully carried out the ‘Olympics’ annually until 2012. When the CPA was signed Acuil decided to look for greener pastures in the government and was appointed in 2008 as SPLM Secretary for Popular & Syndicated Organization.
Acuil then left the organization to Agel and due to mismanagement of funds and lack of responsibility, the NGO died in 2012.
Agel was involved in various night club brawls in Juba due to his drunk behaviours. One incident the victim suffered fractured bones and had to be compensated with undisclosed sum of money. Agel was never taken to court, he was set free because his aging mother had allegedly asked for sympathy.
When Agel was appointed as a political parties youth forum leader, he moved to one of Juba’s best hotels where he spent years. One of hotel managers inquired yesterday who will pay the expenses incurred by Agel during his stay the hotel.
The Reason Why Agel Ring Defected
Agel was appointed a chairman of political parties youth forum before war started in December 2013. A position he got through the help of his uncle Acuil Bangol.
He was part of the now disbanded infamous crisis of management committee that was formed immediately by President when fighting broke out in Juba. The committee was tasked to facilitate humanitarian assistance to the people displaced across the country but it turned out to be a source of money of all the members including Agel who misappropriated the committee’s funds prompting the president to disband it.
In Nov 2014 Agel’s was appointed as chairperson of the steering committee of the newly established National Youth Union. The committee was constituted a by ministerial order issued by the minister of youth, sports and culture madam Nadia Arop Dudi. Agel was deputized by musician Lam Tungwar.
This steering committee was to organise the first national youth convention in Juba where delegates and representatives from all ten states would elect the youth leaders to lead the new youth governmental organisation.
They were allocated millions of pounds by the ministry to prepare for the convention but Agel got accused of mismanagement of the funds. He was questioned by the ministry’s officials which angered him and started accusing individuals in the ministry of conspiracy to oust him as chairperson.
Agel’s private conversation where he is talking about how weak and corrupt the government is was allegedly taped by his close friend.
The conversation tapped secretly was taken to the minister who in turn sacked Agel in a decree read on SSTV during 9pm English news bulletin.
Mr. Agel Ring then traveled to Addis Ababa immediately where he declared his defection to Riek Machar’s rebellion.
It is crystal clear that Agel is an opportunist and a bloody job seeker like all those other SPLM opportunists.
John Masura, the number one blogger in South Sudan and founder of Hotinjuba.com
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What about the other twos, Mr Jesus Deng and Mr Alier A, did they defected or did they joined the SPLM-OI?, what about splitting, did they split within the splm membership (party) in Juba or what is really happening on the ground did most or all Dinka Graduates and graduating especially intellectual from abroad (terrap) are joining Dr Riak Machar, G-10 or radical NGO’s international forum discoursing about SS?, what is actually driving their fundamental potential in Riek’s predictions about the Nation, South Sudan?
I think the SPLM in government must mind human development and humanity of the people, or else all intellectual youth in juba have mentally or will probably sooner join Riek after collecting few monies from government, the truth have already prevailed in them, they are not happy nor they admire the situation being imposed on them, their mothers, fathers and relatives, but being in an absolute poverty of money and power is the real obstacle refraining them from defecting, but let me assure you that, divorcing SPLM In G, divorcing splm in G is not the same as divorcing the nation, so you got so many options and opportunities to do so especially if you are patriotic enough. Let just wait and see what they going do next!
There are huge counts of masses defections or joining youth from the two GBs Dinkas everyday everywhere, attitude defections are higher favouring SPLM in opposition than using the bullet norm culture of rebels.
According to what I have understood about the article by Mr. John, Agel is supposed to have an insight of his personality. Otherwise, rebellion is not the best choice for him.
So, the guy is just a thief like his uncles in the government.
I think is better not to judge people it is better to think what we can do better for our country. We have been judging ourselves since struggle time. please let me and you brainstorm what can we do to move this nation forward