The Politics and Media Frenzy Surrounding Madam Nyandeng de Mabioor
4 min readBy Abraham Garang, Nairobi-Kenya.
Nyandeng de Mabior has to be discreet of media if she still embraces her political ambition of running for president. In fact, Nyandeng uses of media which is one of the democratic principles to use during any political crisis. However, South Sudan is a democratic state, but still did not embrace those principles so far.
Whatever Nyandeng’ is reporting upon the media, might impact her and her family in various forms particular her son who is part and parcel of rebel delegations in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
The media and politics always have close ties because political players need media to expose their promises and mobilise people for rallies. But what astonish me is politics that has been adopted by the wife of late Dr John Garang de Mabior, considered as a founding father of the Republic of South Sudan. In my view, Nyandeng de Mabior has went further since this calamity took place that polarise the country. She had behaved inappropriately by criticising the government and miss used the media houses.
Since this tension took place on 15 December 2013, Nyandeng had became the chief campaigner for Dr Riek Machar. The reason that allowed Dr Riek to became rebel leader was due to President Kiir intention to eliminate him and other SPLM elites last December.
Nyandeng de Mabior deluded public everywhere she went by disseminating false information that president Kiir personal armies killed the Nuer people including children. Everywhere she went, she talks about kiir’s and massacred committed by president Kiir personal armies.
Instead, Nyandeng supposed to condemned the killing that has occurred in the country she only condemned the violent death of the Nuer people in Juba, the capital of South Sudan. She forgot to mention that this conflict had affected many entire South Sudanese.
Honourable Nyandeng did not know that the government and citizenry of South Sudan have seen her post in this tumult. The administration and particularly the chairman did not crave to hold her accountable because of the respect of Dr John Garang de Mabior, and Nyandeng used it as an advantage. Instead, she clouds challenged Dr Riek Machar’s and President Kiir for causing this chaos if she was reformist and really planning to run for the presidency come 2015 election.
Simply because her stance alone, she could not do anything alone. She is only fighting for political detainees release and Kiir to step down. She has no independent ideas, just depends upon other SPLM elites. She could have challenged those duo leaders instead of taking sides. Most, South Sudanese knew Nyandeng is an inexperienced politician, and she is not capable of leading any ministerial position. However, she yarn to run for the presidency because of the late Dr John Garang.
Today, she misreporting information to western media that President Kiir is a dictator and if the elections would have to take place come 2015 he will intimidate his political opponents. If she was saucy enough, she could have started her campaign and abandon these two leaders of failing the state since 2005 rather than relying on Dr Riek Machar.
She thought that president Kiir should be submitted to International Criminal Court for mass killing that happened in Juba, South Sudan. And she forgets that justice will not be looking of who caused this chaos, but justice will deal with who killed innocent civilians in Bor, Malakal and Bentiu. It would be well if we wear lenses of justice prior scrutinising what will take place in the court if one of these duo leaders are brought to book. I strongly believe that Dr Riek Machar and president would succeed in the future especially during the election. Nevertheless, the ICC has no legal power to look into human rights abuses without cooperation of the South Sudan government.
Abraham Garang currently lives and studying in Nairobi University in Nairobi, Kenya.
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