Dead silence after officials summons by the parliament
6 min read
By Awuol Gabriel Arok, Juba, South Sudan
March 2018 (SSB) — A week ago South Sudan Parliamentarians waved yellow stick at the suffering people of South Sudan by summoning a number of government officials to explain many circumstances surrounding the suffering of South Sudanese, with its grand powers and as an arm of the government that represent the electorates, makes laws and oversee the government via hearings and inquiries the move crammed many veins with hope and will of action
As many wondered on how effective the calling will be due to numerous and previous calls that were ignored and are still on the question holder with no clear yielding, follow up and implementation.
Another section of the public thought everything was going to be fine because of smoky warning given by Hon. Speaker such as withdrawal of License during the deliberations that led to summon involving 5 Ministers and a Governor to explain why they have not been able to control the massive pollution caused by oil exploration in the oil-producing areas of paloich and Melut which had been affecting people around with some cases of babies being born dead or deformed.
According to the committee that was sent by TLA to Northern Upper Nile State 36 containers and boxes of expired chemicals were not properly dumped by the Dar Petroleum Operating Company in the area of Adar County and another 42 containers of expired toxic drugs were found in the warehouse.
Challenges facing citizens such as poor health/hygiene, high prices of commodities in the market fall under direct observatory eyes of the parliament.
Hopefully the issue of environmental pollution in oil producing areas has been on the discussing list for quite long, issues to do with chemical and oil should not dodge the observatory eyes of South Sudanese because of their long term effect on human, land and animals living in those areas.
Everyone appreciated the move taken by the parliament, but on the nearing end of it, none of those summoned has so far responded.
Parliament as the arm of government that makes law and ensures laws of the land are respected and implemented has the longest arm of action granting it maximum responsibility of asking and inquiring on behalf and issues affecting the citizens.
In another summon Ministers of; Finance, Trade, Interior, Governor of Bank of South Sudan, Mayor of Juba City Council and Chairman of the Chamber of Commerce were called to explain the sharp increase of prices and services in the country such as why the barrel of water near the Nile River such as Kator and Atlabara goes up to 250 SSP.
The step taken by the parliament was greatly applauded by the public but one week later none of those summon turned up for the hearing hence forcing an isolated voter to wonder whether the parliament has becomes a no-going zone for the leaders.
Is it not through the parliament that one can become a politician? Has the parliament become a fearful ground many wonder?
Parliamentarians must have clean coins in their coats when going back to their electorates/constituencies yes tough question of what happen? Where was our voice? Are the pending questions that need tactical movement and actions.
Since the devaluation of South Sudanese Pound in 2015, prices and fees tripling have been on the choking ride and stiffen racing as people watch them with facial bravery and hope for potential change, but after many pockets became dried and torn, the bitter part of the deadly drama is at its utmost echelon.
With all sorts of excuses put on US dollar, the legal tender of the American people, merciless dealers have taken advantage and are disobediently adding the wrong figures of eventuality.
The end users who are consumers of goods and services including the dealers themselves have been under the bed of confusion for so long, without exception the dealers are knifing their own hands unknowingly as potential buyers within the same markets they defectively run.
Depreciation of pounds against US Dollar send off the prices of items in the markets by two to three times the affected value hence making it peculiar business practices, this odd behaviour has forced some of the customers to ask why? While other swallow their saliva in silence.
The issues of market prices fluctuation on daily basis has silently traumatized most of our people and every answer given is ‘‘because of dollar’’, one may ask what is the reason of dodging a known business arithmetic calculations such as systematic adding of figures.
Multiplication of the day cost of goods and services the next day by THREE TIME VALUE is a puzzle that needs to be answer correctly and clearly by the concern stakeholders such as the chamber of commerce, Business Union, Customer’s Protection Union if it exist, Ministry of Trade, Mayor of Juba City, Governor of Central Bank, Sellers and the Buyers themselves.
Another issue that need to be added into the list of unfruitful summon is the issue of school fees particularly in Juba , an educational awareness that have been on an intensive campaigns both by the Government of South Sudan and UN Organizations such as UNICEF, UNESCO, WFP and UNHCR with beautiful convincing slogans such as ‘‘BACK TO LEARNING’’ ‘‘BACK TO SCHOOL’’ was positively picked by the parents and the children but currently due to some economic challenges and tyrannical conducts by some of the schools, parents have became restless and hopeless due to numerous demands and conditions given by the private schools.
Parents have been struggling to furnish for school uniform and stationeries but as of recent another condition of taking rim of papers, toilet papers, brooms to the schools popped up and has puzzled many parents of the school going children.
Without forwarding notice to the parents the term fees of almost all the private schools in Juba has increased by 70% during the opening in February 2018 an abnormal increment which had sent many parents into a confusing action of head scratching, for instance a school that was charging a primary 1 pupils with 1,500 SSP a term in 2017 has gone up to 4,500 SSP per a term this year.
With such severe change, everyone in the city is wondering and hopping from place to place in an attempt to know what is happenings in schools.
Caught between the hard rock’s of uncertainty, those who think of pulling out their children from private schools to government schools are left with nothing but close-eyes since many of the government school are already congested and.
With stress and humiliation many parents are left with nothing but just to swallow their saliva, keep their mouth shut and watch all the happenings in silence.
God Bless South Sudan
Awuol Gabriel Arok, a Writer and a Poet, has a Bachelor Degree in Social and Developmental Studies from the University of Juba, South Sudan, he is the author of unpublished book ‘‘The Wisdom Horn’’ and an Initiator of ‘‘Your Tribe is My Tribe’’ and ‘‘Giving Heart Foundation’’ initiatives. He can be reached via his email Address: jjmkamzeearokson@yahoo.com
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