by Agele Benson Amos
It is a Saturday morning and Mbaraza Emmanuel, a resident of Hai mission in Yei town Payam, Yei River County, looks despondent as he stands outside his makeshift hut and contends with the reality of facing yet another difficult day in his life.
Emmanuel like most ordinary people has nothing to show for his involvement in the long struggle for Southern Sudanese independence. “I can tell you that a lot of people in Southern Sudan are languishing in adverse poverty, many people cannot afford even a daily meal, yet we see people driving big fuel guzzling vehicles”, laments Emmanuel as he clasps a panga in his hands ready to look for a casual job. Emmanuel relies on casual jobs on people’s farms and nets an average of 30 Sudanese Pounds on a good day (equivalent to ten US dollars).
He says that there are basic services that he wished could be made available to the ordinary citizens in the rural villages by the government of Southern Sudan. “If we could have clean water, good roads and even schools for our children, I can tell you we would be very happy people. For now, as you can see, the majority of our kids are out of school, not because we have withdrawn them but, because there are no schools. I personally wish the government could divert some of the resources it has been using to purchase expensive vehicles to build schools everywhere”, Emmanuel says with a ray of concern clearly written on his face.
He admits that like the rest of Southerners, he decried the use of child soldiers to serve in the military. “Though many of the children were forcefully recruited into the military at any early age during the war, it is something that should be discouraged because it denied us a worthy generation to help drive this would be new nation to the next level of development”, Emmanuel says. He also says that even as Southern Sudan awaits the marking of its first independence day on July 9, the government should work harder to create a better relationship between the army and civilians.
Another local resident, Mr Abraham Ladu Joseph, 62, of Hai Gabat in Yei River County, said SPLM day should be treated with great importance in the new country’s calendar since it ended ‘slavery’ in the South. Abraham said the government should now concentrate on infrastructure development to prove to the world that it was capable of managing its own affairs. “After July 9, we should not continue begging for help from other countries. We must be seen to be independent,” he said. The 62 year old man urged the government to create more employment opportunities for the youth, arguing that this would reduce the crime rate and idleness.
Sony Aseinzo, a resident of Lomuku village, thinks that the government should invest in the empowerment of women, whom she said also played a big role in the war of liberation. Sony further says that youth empowerment should also be given a high priority in the government’s strategic plan.
“Without a proper strategic plan on the part of the government, I can tell you corruption will continue claiming all the gains we have made. It would be good if we consider the fact that this is a young nation devoid of tribalism and hatred”, she observes. She says that the biggest challenges for Southern Sudan are tribalism, nepotism and corruption.