South Sudan: Beyond Transitional Government
By Kachuol Mabil Piok, Nairobi.
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As world grapples desperately to restore sanity to war ravaged South Sudan, various approaches to end the four-month crisis hardly suffice. It is common currency that civil wars often end either in military victory of one side over the other, negotiated settlement based on power sharing or through the military intervention of an external actor (international organizations).In the case of South Sudan, it is apparent that neither the government nor the rebel movement has the capacity to defeat the other militarily. The rebellion is hard to defeat because it is largely sustained by an identity as an ideology. The Nuer nation feel threatened and has a strong will to fight to the last man.
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On the contrary it does not have the capacity to defeat the government. The government has superior, sophisticated weapons and support from other regional and international actors with enormous interests in South Sudan. If this war is allowed to continue it repercussions will undermine efforts to restore stability.
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What is the way forward?
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Despite the fact that formation of Transitional Government (TG) is expected to restore semblance of peace to South Sudan, it is not an end by itself but a mean to the desired objective. If the aim of the Transitional Government is to accommodate the opposition then it is going to be a short-term fix but a deferral of this crisis. Kantian philosophy of democratic Peace Theory offers the best solution to end intra-state wars. A complete overhaul of John Luk’s despotic constitution must be the first step in waging peace. This constitution was written with the motives of centralization of power in the hands of the executive. It undermines the growth of democracy and alienates the citizens from processes of governance, to say the least.
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South Sudan needs a Republican Constitution that is largely informed by consent of the citizens not subjects. This crisis is largely a function of the absence or personalization of the institutions. The modus operadi between these institutions (Legislature, Executive, and Judiciary) has been largely based on quid pro quos which has greatly undermined accountability, transparency and institutional development. The world over, parliaments are the fulcrum of checks and balances aimed at serving the interests of the public. In South Sudan, the parliament is just a rubber stamp, subjected to frequent executive bullies and intimidation. South Sudan judiciary, another important arm of government is also the most dormant, non-effective, staffed with Khartoum trained judges , the archetypes of Judas Iscariot.
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The new agreement or any agreement that shall be reached in the due process must put a moratorium to appointments by decrees and recommend an establishment of a vetting committee to ensure that competent individuals get the job. Appointments by decrees have been shunned by all democracies because they have widely become tools of neo-patrimonialism. Instead of serving the interests of the public, institutions end up serving interests of the strongmen whom everyone owes his/her existence unto.
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Devolution of resources
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We have the best system of governance but it has been weakened by authoritarian tendencies at the center. Central government in Juba has all along been where mega scandals have been reported but the perpetrators have never been unearthed and executed…it has all been condoned because of the simple credo, ‘ scratch my back and I will scratch yours’,which has established the impregnable alliance of thieves .
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To end this crisis, we must devolve corruption to the states, and down to the counties such that each community will be able to deal with its mini thieves at the local level.The anti-corruption commission must be allowed to investigate all sorts of scandals committed since the establishment of the then Government of Southern Sudan (GoSS) up to post-independent government. Individuals found to have defraud the public institutions must be executed to deter others from following the same suit. Fiscal devolution is paramount in realization of peace in the country, this simple dictum suffices to explain the genesis of the crisis-an hungry man is an angry man-If the economic, social, and political distance decay persists conflicts and violence will continue to engulf the country.
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Federal system is believed to be the best system for multi-ethnic societies because it makes each community part and parcel of the bigger political tent. Bringing government closer to the people enhance the legitimacy of the regime. President Kiir’s government only exists in Juba where 80% of the national revenues are spent. Peripheries are susceptible to insurgencies because the state is not existing, thus they only have one option, and that is to support the insurgencies or perish.
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International Support
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The world must learn from the past, all these conflicts we are witnessing today are legacies of unfinished businesses of the grand Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA, 2005) signed at Nyayo Stadium, Nairobi, Kenya. The event was witnessed by both regional and international organizations who then pledged their support to it final conclusion. Sadly, the world did not live up to it pledges.The implementation of the CPA was left to the two partners: Sudan People’s Liberation Movement/Army and the National Congress Party (NCP).The two could not overcome long protracted mistrust and implement the agreement to the letter. Non-committal of the International Community in the Sudan explains the ongoing crises in Blue Nile, Darfur and Southern Kordafan.
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The two areas were promised the right to popular consultation in the CPA which did not take place.If the world is ready to see a stable South Sudan, there must be a lot of political, economic, and military investments in peace. Signatures have never guaranteed peace without threats. The two leaders came to the negotiating table because of the enormous pressure and threats of sanctions exerted by the US, TROIKA and other regional countries. Thereforethe same commitments must not be relented, or else it is going to be a boom, slump and violence again
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In conclusion, any meaningful peace will only be sustained when all communities are equal stakeholders in governance. We need credible institutions that give back to the society in terms of services such as road networks, education, health facilities, and security.
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