Why "Dollars For Abyei" May Backfire "Is it true that Mr. Pagan Amum Okiech wants to appease Bashir by offering US Dollars for Abyei?"
02 December 2011 By Mark Otwari Odufa It has been reported in our Daily Newspapers that the SPLM Secretary General, Mr. Pagan Amum Okiech proposed offering some millions of dollars to Bashir in exchange for Abyei (The Citizen, Monday, November 21, 2011 – Vol. 6. Issue 305 and the Juba Post of November 28th – December 1st, 2011), which provoked sharp criticism from Dinka Ngok Community. If it is true, I doubt whether Mr. Pagan Amum we know as a fighter meant what has been reported. It could be a political hoodwink as a ram’s backward movement to build enough potential energy to blast off the antagonist into smithereens just to paraphrase our late hero Dr. John Garang de Mabior when he said that in his speech during the signing of the Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA) on 9th January 2005 in Nairobi Kenya. But assuming that he said what has been reported, then it is an unfortunate political gimmick which can easily backfire.A somewhat good comparison of this scenario would be what happened in the Bible between the two women over a stolen baby. Each woman was claiming the baby to be hers. When they went to King Solomon to resolve the matter, the King decided that the baby should be cut into two so that each woman should have a half. One of the two women agreed for the baby to be cut into two. But the other one refused and instead told King Solomon to let the woman who agreed for the baby to be cut into two to take the baby as hers. After listening to the two women’s reactions, he decided that the woman who agreed for the baby to be cut into two was not the real mother of the baby but the one who did not want the baby to be cut into two, and the baby was given to her. Mr. Pagan Amum Okiech and El Bashir could be assumed to be the two women in the Bible quarreling over Abyei which is the stolen “baby” (land). Assuming that King Solomon was still alive and the case was taken to him, and having listened carefully to their arguments where Pagan Amum tried to buy Abyei from Bashir and Bashir refusing to sell it to him claiming the land is his, King Solomon would conclude that Abyei belongs to Bashir and not Pagan Amum. Simply because you cannot buy what is yours from a thief or a robber. This is a political blander which can put us in an unfortunate argument over what is genuinely ours. Instead the money meant to appease Bashir should be used to uplift the living standard of South Sudanese in terms of education, health, agriculture, housing, sanitation and other social services as we are considered to be some of the poorest people on the planet. The money should be used to recruit, train, and equip South Sudan Armed Forces to be well disciplined and well paid and to defend our country from the hostile North Sudan. Abyei as it is well known belongs to the south but was transferred to former Kordofan Province of western Sudan in 1905 by a colonial administrator purely for administrative reasons. The Nomadic Misseriya Arabs use it as a grazing land for their animals during the dry seasons and as a passage to farther south in Northern Bahr el Gazel. During the war, the people of Abyei suffered just like any other southern Sudanese even worst from Khartoum’s atrocities especially the Misseriyas. At the beginning of the negotiations in Kenya to end the war in the Sudan, I wrote in the then SPLM mouth piece, “the Update” edited by George Garang (Now the Undersecretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting) that “while Abyei is part of Southern Sudan, the Southern Kordofan (Nubba Mountains) and Southern Blue Nile (The Ingesena) should be subjected to a referendum to decide whether they join the south or remain in the north”. The proposal was adopted but modified to have Abyei go for the referendum together with the south while Southern Kordofan and Southern Blue Nile go for Popular Consultation. In the agreement, only the Dinka Ngok are supposed to vote in the referendum either to join the south or remain in the north. There was no mention of the Misseriya. This was embodied in the CPA owned by both the SPLM representing Southern Sudan and the NCP representing the Government of Sudan and the international community i.e. the UN, USA, EU, IGAD and the Arab League. The Dinka Ngok representing Abyei were supposed to vote together with the Southerners during the 9th January 2011 referendum as per the CPA. But because of NCP’s political intransigence, obstinacy and foxy cunningness, this was not achieved. The question is what next? The Republic of South Sudan (RSS) should insist on the CPA and where necessary, an appeal to the International Court at The Hague and whether Khartoum likes it or not, Abyei will one day rejoin the Republic of South Sudan. Khartoum maneuvers are nothing but the last kicks of a dying horse. As I said in one of my previous articles, “Always talk peace but be ready to defend ourselves from unpredictable enemy”, like Bashir. Recommendations •The issue of Abyei should strictly follow the CPA guidelines and where necessary, the International Court of Justice at The Hague should be the only exit. No amount of money should be paid to buy Abyei from Khartoum •The economic imbalance between Khartoum and Juba should be carefully calculated by the World Bank and most likely, Khartoum owes Juba in terms of assets stolen since the so called independence in January 1956. •The retreat made by our Ministers and Deputy Ministers to Mombasa Kenya should have been made to Bentiu and Malakal to have an eye witness of our people who are displaced by Khartoum’s constant bombardment. This would definitely boost the morale of our soldiers to defend our country from Khartoum’s hostile acts. •No room for criticism should be given to our enemies to under mind our government in front of its citizens. Our leaders should make sure that their house is put in order. Therefore, all money said to be stashed in foreign banks outside the country should be repatriated and used for providing social services to the citizens as the president has said several times in his speeches. •A Think Tank should be formed to brainstorm on critical issues based on proper research and advise the president accordingly. For instance, the Think Tank can devise a method on how the stolen money can be returned quietly without revealing the characters involved in order to protect their social image. •The rule of law should be strictly followed to protect the law abiding citizens and foreigners and to portray our image positively in the eyes of the world. Criminals consisting of murderers, robbers, land grubbers and those indulging in production of forged money should be arrested and locked in without bail. •The South Sudan Arm Forces should be well recruited, trained, discipline, equipped and well paid to be constantly on alert to defend our country from the unpredictably hostile North Sudan under the dictator Omer El Bashir. Conclusion As I said in one of my previous articles, there is lack of political will to resolve some of our political and social issues legally, firmly and amicably. There are many South Sudanese out there with brilliant ideas that can benefit this country but they have no access to decision making body to let them be heard. Having gained our independence, we have no alternative but to work together for the success of this country. Mark Otwari Odufa Posted in: Opinions -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "South Sudan Info - The Kob" group. 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