SOMEBODY TO HELP UPPER NILE FROM BEING LOOTED BY THE GOVERNOR (4)

The political turmoil in Upper Nile is developing faster than my pen. The Australian Governor of Upper Nile Simon Kun Pouch is creating confusion that may result into insecurity in the state and probably the whole country. The fellow is not acting alone but maybe some fingers are pushing him from behind. The governor maintains his own militia and security agencies. He is behaving like a wounded lion. SPLM as a party should look into this chaotic situation created by the governor and not to use escape-goats tactics as usual.

Just to re-cap from the previous warning articles, Kun was set to create confusion in order to survive in the muddy political water which is being practice in Juba. Kun sanctioned the speaker of assembly from Malakal and threatened him if he continued to stay he may lose his life. The poor guy has to go on self imposed exile outside the state. Upon the return of the speaker to state, the Australian Upper Nile Governor was on home leave enjoying his loot in Australian. The speaker decided to put his house in order in democratic manner. He called the members of the assembly for an urgent meeting. The agenda was to confirm whether he the speaker is still in that position or should he resign. He was absent from Malakal for quite a long period due to illness and threats from the governor. The second agenda was to develop a road map for the next sessions of the assembly. On the first point, if the assembly still wants to be the speaker, then it must into voting. No one came up to contest with him so he was unanimously confirmed by the assembly that he was still their speaker.

On the road map, the speaker requested that the deputy was also subjected to confirmation through voting. The assembly elected a new deputy speaker instead of the former. The former deputy was much closed to the governor with imitated manner. Whatever discussed in the assembly was communicated by him to the governor. When he was acting speaker, he sabotaged assembly and the assembly could not conduct business. He was being groomed by the governor to be the next speaker. When he did not succeed to win, he told the members that the assembly will be closed. That actually happened when the deputy-governor, the American-Burun, turned up the second day with a bunch of security agencies and declared the assembly closed. The other parts of the second agenda was to re-elect chairpersons of specialized committees which was also unanimously accepted by the house and probe into missing 150 SSP millions which was approved for Malakal road construction plus missing county development funds.

When the Australian Upper Nile Governor Simon Kun returned from home, he got his hands burning from hot political potatoes in which he immediately rebounded to Juba to brief the President on these crises. According to him, he was ordered by the President to deal with the Assembly.

On his second turned to Malakal, he learned there was a committee from Council of States coming for investigation. He took the opportunity of free UNMISS flight back to Juba leaving behind the committee. The interesting part of this political trick ring is the committee from Juba and its composition. The committee was headed by Hon. Faustino Atem Gwaldit a dinka from Warrap County and Hon Lewis Vito Akwar a Jur-chol from Kwarijena in Western Bahr el Ghazal. The two gentlemen are known of being alcoholics and their attitude of bribery. The governor is surviving in giving out cash in bribery to politicians like the Speaker of Councils of State, the rain maker. The two gentlemen were honored with Whisky and a lot of cash in their favor. This was revealed by one MP who got part of the wind fall. The committee declares that their mission was only to meet the executive and not the assembly. How can the committee be regarded as neutral committee, since they were impartial from the beginning. They met deputy governor and the dismissed deputy speaker. They conducted another election only for SPLM members for the two deputy speakers and again the former deputy failed. Hon Akwar statement on radio was that people in Malakal lack political awareness and the speaker was absent from the state for long time. How could Mr. Akwar justify his allegation without meeting the speaker?

The wrangling of political crises continued when the Australian Upper Nile Governor Simon Kun decided to dismiss the speaker and his deputy and imposed his choice of speaker and deputy without forum in assembly and no elections conducted. Many members did not even bother to attend the open of the assembly.

The damaged done by this governor is enormous. In Upper Nile there are structures by NCP still operational like Crop Market. This market is found in Renk and Malakal. Crop market is another form of taxation to siphoning public money in individual pockets of the governor and his cousin the town mayor. All taxation taken from boats from Juba is taken to the house of governor and the mayor.

The other source of siphoning money is the rent of Public Square by river side to Chinese road Construction Company. He is getting a net of 10 thousand US Dollars per month. He rented a government house to Ethiopian Commercial Bank and another to Ethiopian Church. All the proceeds get to his pocket.

Recently the governor issued a letter to the Ministry of Animal Resources to disposed seven vehicles in good condition to be caution to his relatives in Malakal. In this austerity measures situation how can government vehicles be disposed cheaply? The vehicles can still be used in the counties.

A lot of money is being looted in the name of purchasing fuel. Those managing the money are his relatives. There has been no electricity in Malakal for the last eight months. The generator operating in the governor's house belongs to Zain Company. The governor in a tyrant manner commandeers the generator and the company is afraid to claim it back.

The governor is creating chaos which could lead to insecurity and eventually civil war in Upper Nile. He is doing all these under the nose of SPLM. The ground is ripe for a civil war. Here, one is not trying to be diatribe. Facts have has be told. A Nuer could easily kill a Shilluk and go free but not vise visa.

All the ears and eyes of people of Upper Nile are towards Juba for GOOD NEWS that the Australian Upper Nile Governor of Upper Nile Simon Kun Pouch is removed. In one of his speeches over the radio, the governor promised he will mess up Malakal before he leaves.

By: Yorwin Otor; This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.