Dear Doctor Lam Akol Ajawin, By Tearz Ayuen
6 min readDear Lam
Without much ado, I am going straight to the point. I am phrasing my thoughts and feelings to you in this short write up to let you know that you just broke my heart. Why are you staying in Khartoum? Why did you opt to relocate to Khartoum? Did you independently decide or you got compelled by anyone? Did you really weigh the pros and cons? Are you telling me indirectly that you finally quit being a South Sudanese? Why quit? How about the heart, determination and commitment you abandoned your position as Khartoum University lecturer for in 1986? How about SPLM-DC? Don’t tell me you will operate from Khartoum because it’s politically unethical and unacceptable. How about the presidential aspirations you got? How about the people who voted for you in the April 2010 elections? How about the war against corruption you were so passionate about?
By the way, you don’t have to know what I am; you can just consider me a voice of reason.
I know everyone is entitled to live wherever he or she likes so long as he has what it takes to do so, but for an influential intellectual like you, it is such a wrong choice especially at these critical times South Sudan needs radicals, change bringers. In addition to that, leaving Juba for Sudan is in itself an insult to South Sudanese people who sacrificed all they had to free themselves from all kinds of evil acts meted out against them by successive Khartoum governments. You couldn’t move to somewhere else, Lam?
Though I cannot tell exactly the motive behind your “defection” from South Sudan, you probably grew hopeless after President Kiir miserly distributed all the government seats to his corrupt yes-men. He could not even give you the least important position at the ministries like that of a watchman? What’s wrong with Kiir? He is such a mean democratically elected head of state! I condemn the presidency for that anyway, advisors to be specific.
Uncle Lam, your move says a lot. It could mean that you’re a loser; the greatest of all times. Your vision and ambitions just died like that? Your political enemies will now capitalize on it. They will soon begin to prove themselves right by poisoning the heads of the masses that indeed the SPLM-DC party you founded is an armed movement against Kiir’s government. You just gave them a million reasons to break more jaws of SPLM-DC supporters and a trillion reasons to blame any internal armed conflict on you. The accusations labeled against you by pagan Amum which indicated that Khartoum armed a militia group you are affiliated with, shortly after Salva Kiir politically punched you in the face, leaving your nose bleeding in the 2010 elections, will now be considered true.
Your disappearance from the country’s political arena could reveal that you never meant your words, promises, pledges; you never really wanted to make a difference. All you wanted was a position to enrich yourself just like the rest.
Now that you have quit, who will fight the grand corruption in the government that is currently affecting the eight millions? Incidentally, a lot have happened after you left. Arthur Akuein, the former finance minister who seems to know much about the multi-billion dollar scandal came back with a loud bang. Amum took him to court for announcing that he, Akuein, wired $30 million dollars into Amum’s bank account. It was a very interesting case. The high court sped up the whole process and quickly acquitted Amum, prompting Akuein to say a parting shot: “I had written that the money was given to the secretary general of the SPLM, under his leadership. What makes it to be something that has gone to a private account? I have never mentioned it. My document is there. It will be interpreted further by people who understand English.”
Even media houses that reported the corruption allegations were also fined. What a court! What a system!
You must have heard that 75 officials stole billions. Kiir himself said that. 75 top officials?! That means the whole cabinet is rotten. Their names should honorifically begin with the new honorific, “Thief” for example; Thief Honorable Ngor-gutakalthi Deng-gutakaldit will on Friday fly to Dubai to attend a World Business Summit, Thief Honorable Butrus Ajak has launched a 5-year strategic plan……. and so on. See? If the baby country followed the modern international standards of good governance, none of them would run for or hold any government position in the next election, government. So, who would capitalize on that? Isn’t it you?
Lam-dit, you pissed me off when you shamelessly told Victor Lugala in an interview late last year that you did not attend the Independence Day on the 9th of July because no one invited you. Who the hell do you think you are? You wanted to be told to be happy about South Sudan’s biggest day ever? Well, even though Kiir’s government didn’t ask you over as an opposition party, you couldn’t show up at John Garang Memorial park just like any ordinary citizen? Lam please!
What are you afraid of? – Kiir? Why would he harm you? He knows the difference between right and wrong, not to mention the international community that watches every step he makes. Nevertheless, I wouldn’t lie to you that the constitution can protect you because the wrath of the law only applies to the weak and voiceless, and maybe a revolutionary like you. The top dogs have immunized themselves against some articles. They get anything they want at any time. I know those unruly ruthless and almost useless security cartoons assumed the role of a dentist and unnecessarily unofficially brutally removed two teeth of one of your top party’s officials, Onyoti Adigo. Is that the right way to tackle an opposition? But that shouldn’t scare ambitions out of you. In fact, you should emulate Honorable Adigo. He is so tolerant and focused. He has proved that nothing, no one can stop him. And that’s why he is carrying on with his duties as a citizen and as well as an opposition figure who considers fighting the system from within a better option.
Or have you finally realized that you joined politics by mistake, for the wrong reasons; and now is the right time to resume your career – lectureship? If yes, I am begging you to leave Khartoum and come back home and impart your knowledge and skills to South Sudanese students who are currently facing educational starvation in various universities as fake lecturers fool them. If you don’t want to be close to president Kiir and Amum in Juba, please teach somewhere in John Garang University of Science and Technology in Bor. Oops! Bor is so close to Juba. Just teach in Malakal or Wau.
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