Jieng Jonglei vs Jieng Bor: The FOUR DINKAS of the Colonial Mangala District, South Sudan
4 min read
By Zack Mayul, Juba, South Sudan
Friday, October 7, 2022 (PW) — I think God created them at the last minute. Some pieces were made from fine materials, whereas others were put together to simultaneously complete a human being, which is a good thing and a bad thing. That’s okay. This can be filtered through other nearby cultures and socialization. However, the big challenge is here, guys. For example, Dinka Bor bypasses danger and magnifies tiny issues to make them look bigger.
Most influential figures like Tearz Ayuen, John Pende Ngong, and PaanLuel Wël have been heeded here and there, but nobody ever cares. Perhaps our listening skills were given to us in a brown envelope through a third party who first used it and gave it to us later after God had made several calls to instruct the messenger to provide us with what belonged to us. (Pun)!
Here is the thing. Of all the things we’ve ever had or never had, it’s going to be wrong for a sub-section of any given plan to hold a meeting that lasts for more than one hour or a symbol that never pays a dime. Duk County, for example, despite having many things on their bucket list, whatever they contribute to their associates should settle a clinical issue if Hol Dinka and Nyarweng Dinka come together with their county government or have one big secondary school for the first time in their county.
Twic East and Bor County are facing the same thing. I personally feel like there’s more that all these counties can do. Some excellent chunks are poured into associations in the name of “maintaining” social norms and values that get defiled almost at the implementation stage. For example, what good does it do when an ordinary man sells his goat to support a struggling son or daughter in Kampala but ends up donating the same money to buy a uniform or to be Royal Girls or Duk Flower Girls?
There’s nothing wrong with the uniform or culture. But yes, these same cultures being maintained with uniforms or membership fees are the source of division. Believe it or not, the netizens of these three counties, despite how influential they are today, are more divided than in our days in Kakuma.
With simple logic, what the hell is Jieng Jonglei when names like Thoibek, Pakuor, Poktap, or Amiel can’t even pay a bill for a man being misled to change the name of Greater Bor or being called Bor? For example, Ajang is a middle-aged man. He has two cows and three fishing nets. During the dry season, he goes to the shore of the swamp to sustain his family, and during the dry season, he survives on his cows.
Ajang has never been to Bor Town or Juba, where communities are tearing apart. How does this Jieng Jonglei help him? Eng. Noble Leek might be against his community today, but the fact remains that he was once a supporter of one of the candidates during the Greater Bor General Election. One of his colleagues or friends, as well, might or might not have made it to the county’s leadership to support the agenda of Greater Bor or not. A third eye must see it.
This is what I think of the Hol Dinka and Nyarweng Dinka of Duk County. They’re smart (yes, very smart), but the political force of gravity shouldn’t always land on them if they were that smart. Given the seat of the Deputy Governor, Duk Ku Duk should have used/should use their powers to influence or attract any neighbour or friend of Duk.
The reason is that they have potential leaders who might do great things at the national or state level in the future. It’s their time to sell internal marketing (selling one character to colleagues at work) within and outside the state. Also, it beat my understanding of why an entire county would be rushed at any time, like a waitress in a bar, to beat the drum of disunity.
It’s okay, county by itself and interesting for all of us, but what does Duk lose if they stand back and watch the space? Why would Jieng Jonglei become more important than schools, hospitals, factories, or fighting floods? Three Dinkas!!!!
The author, Zack Mayul, is a blogger (opinion articles), a fictional writer, a poet, and a digital strategist. He runs a small digital marketing firm in Juba. He studied Bachelor of Science in Marketing at Ndejje University, Kampala Campus, and can be reached via his email: zack mayul <zackmayul54@gmail.com>
If you want to submit an opinion article, commentary, or news analysis, please email it to the editor: info@paanluelwel.com or paanluel2011@gmail.com. PaanLuel Wël Media (PW) website does reserve the right to edit or reject material before publication. Please include your full name, a short biography, email address, city, and the country you are writing from.
About Post Author
