Comment on ‘The issue of inflation in South Sudan can’t be resolved overnight’ by Paul Duwar
5 min readComment on ‘The issue of inflation in South Sudan can’t be resolved overnight’ posted by Paul Duwar Bak in Uganda on 26/03/2016 at PaanLuel Wël website.
Majok Arol Dhieu, Rumbek, South Sudan
Dear Paul Duwar Bak,
March 31, 2016 (SSB) —- You have written your article with the title above, which shows exactly that you are outside South Sudan. When I first read your article heading, I thought that you would say that the government has brought this issue of floating rate in order to meet financial lost in the country. I do not see any good reason in your writing because the government officials are just standing with their hands folded on their back and watch the crisis day after day.
Such inflations with positive and negative effects are good with countries that have civilized citizen but NOT good with South Sudan that has 78% illiterate. If I have understood you very well in which you said that the free market decreed by Finance Minister and the Central Bank Governor which has caused hyperinflation is not the solution to the current crisis, then which one must be a solution. You didn’t put your argument in a national view and came up also with your proposed solution.
In literature, you cannot write your article and leave your readers hanging between completing what you have left out or left it incomplete. So in my own view, you want the country to move on with those difficulties. I have been disputing that; I always say that economic crisis overthrow the government which of course you haven’t experienced since you were born. If you are part of government, please inform your clique that a very huge riot is coming your way.
South Sudanese leaders are lucky because the majority of citizen do believe that if their sons/daughters are in the government, then they will relax and hope that they will steal country resources for them but in other countries where accountability is in practice, citizen do claims their right for themselves and that is why you see some countries in turmoil.
Every problem MUST have a solution. If the government put the exchange rate back to its normal/permanent rate of SSP 2.9 per $1, then you will see the commodities coming back to their normal prices. Believe me or not, in the near future, the situation will be robbing Paul to pay peter (which means borrow money from someone in order to pay someone else). Will you be happy with that situation?
I again fall out with you on what you said as ‘inflation will be fought by government using short, medium and long term policies’= please always in writing, you can elaborate your points in order to convince your readers. Short, medium and long-term policies like what and what? It means you are talking as part of the government. We are not against the government but we want to tell the government to correct its activities day after day. There is no government without people and there are no people without government. These two statements go together.
Another one of your sentences goes this way, ‘Inflation is not like a thief who can be chased and physically caught and caged’. My dear friend, catching a thief is more difficult than reversing your order because thieves may be in possession of weapons to fight back those who chase them. It is very simple for Finance Minister and Central Bank to reverse their order by again giving instructions to the public, explaining the situation that the floating rate had caused and that is all. You are feeling this okay because you are outside the country.
I am not talking individually, but what I have seen on the ground is a most dangerous we have never seen. The laypeople are suffering. Some communities with cows will finish their cows selling them in the auction and go back with this ugly maize flour which they only consume five to eight days and come back again with cows. Some communities without cows knows very well what is their main source of getting money from, perhaps rebellions or arms themselves for robbery acts.
I also support the forceful disarmament is what I think must help a bit so that the problem of insecurity be solve and then all the communities must work on their farms without fear of insecurity. Doing these two things (currency exchange rate and disarmament) will play a major role in reducing Financial crisis in the country but if you are supporting the government concocting that you are getting a little from them, you are also cheating yourself because your relatives will suffer since they will not have access to food in your stomach. All of us are getting a little from the government, but the government was not set up for literate elites only. We have to observe our average citizen situation and find a better solution to it.
I am a nationalist who loves always all the people move on with equal living standards but not happy when I see some people suffering although I have a food on my table. This would itch me in the back and would decry to the extent.
I would have likes your article if you would have tell us your readers that the government has done this and that but not to uproar such statement as ‘Definitely the government is doing its best to curb the inflation, but putting unnecessary pressure on the government that inflation be curbed is unrealistic’. The government must have A, B, C solution but if it’s didn’t try A, what do you think the community will do. Why are you trying to gag the whole populace when of course there is no solution brought forward by the government toward the currency crisis/inflation?
Thanks, I remain active.
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