To Office Managers of VP Dr. Riek Machar,
By Dr. Okuk James, Juba, South Sudan
November 10, 2012 (SSB) — Please if you have no business and you have run bankrupt of good political ideas you better keep your bad mouths shut and never meddle into internal affairs of other political parties in South Sudan. How many times the SPLM-DC and its top leader Dr. Lam Akol came public to deny the allegations of links and support to those who want to overthrow SPLM regime by barrels of guns. Dr. Lam Akol even went further courageously urging the accusers to open a legal case and come up with concrete evidence in front of a judge rather than wasting time with media propaganda whose lies are only short-lived. Be reminded that it is not the first time that Dr. Riek Machar utters in public his grudges against Dr. Lam Akol and the SPLM-DC. He has been singing this songs even in funeral places for a while now.
It is known that Dr. Riek refused to give an appointment requested by Dr. Lam Akol to meet him in September – October 2011 when Dr. Lam came to Juba. As if he is the law, Dr. Riek said to the Minority Leader in South Sudan Legislative Assembly three months back that he and other anti-Lam in SPLM will not allow the SPLM-DC to get registered in South Sudan. He was running up and down to pressure the SPLM-DC’s MPs to denounce Dr. Lam Akol and start working as his satellite agents under the cover of SPLM-DC, but good and intelligent enough, the SPLM-DC’s MPs defied the tactics and told him that they will rather accept to be dismissed in the parliament than sell Dr. Lam Akol in favor of the failed and dirtied Dr. Riek Machar. From then it seems to have become a nightmare to Dr. Riek as he has been seen talking irrelevantly and unconsciously about illegal de-registration of SPLM-DC and banning of its leader to come to South Sudan.
Not to forget, VP. Dr. Riek Machar, was the first one to announce happily and officially without any single shame the assassination of Gen. George Athor. Thus, Dr. Riek might have been wishing to announce the same fate to Dr. Lam Akol if he got the chance.
However, Dr. Lam Akol has always been ahead of time and ahead of Dr. Riek’s limited political capacity of politicking. Even when Pres. Salva Kiir steps down, he shall rather prefer Dr. Lam Akol to pass the elections and take the presidential power in order to put South Sudan back on the right track. Pres. Salva Kiir knows that Dr. Riek has never helped but been working against him by not advising him well in many critical occasions. If Dr. Lam was the VP, Pres. Salva Kiir would have gone down into history records as one of the good leaders and founding fathers of South Sudan. Alas!
I think Dr. Riek must be regretting why he missed cowardly to be part of the change needed within the SPLM and outside it when the SPLM-DC got formed in 2009. He was afraid to run in 2010 elections against Pres. Salva Kiir Mayardit, perhaps, because he has realized that democracy his higher than his (Dr. Riek’s) despotic and tribally magical mentality. Now it is too late for him and nothing but home is going to be the best place for him soon. By then we will know who really has a militia, Dr. Lam or Dr. Riek?
By the way who is paying for the cost of the overdue and unnecessary elongating trips and tours of Dr. Riek Machar and his aides in USA while the poor people of new country are suffering from austerity measures at home? If he was sent to deliver the President’s Speech in the UN General Assembly why he did not come back immediately after that. In the last few weeks many patients have died in hospitals in South Sudan due to doctors strikes and many schools are without teachers because of low salaries while Dr. Riek is wasting thousands of dollars overseas. What a shameless vicious Vice President!
I think it is time for the Parliament to amend the constitution and remove that post of Vice President in order to reduce the presidency cost and pay for the basic services to the poor masses rather than to the rich Dr. Riek and his aides. Dr. Black Problem Must Go!
Dr. James Okuk,
Department of Political Science, University of Juba.
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