South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Aluong Maker Aluong.
The leader of the African People’s Congress (APC), Deng-bil William Aguer, has criticised top government officials and generals for the widespread circulation of guns. He argues that the availability of weapons emboldens civilians and traders to carry out attacks, even in public business centres like Mogiri.
Aguer levelled charges against high-ranking government officials and generals regarding an incident that occurred on 6 August in the Mogiri area of Central Equatoria. This incident resulted in the deaths of eight traders, with eight others injured, and more than 3,000 head of cattle raided by gunmen in Mogiri.
In an interview with The Dawn Newspaper on Saturday, he firmly stated that the blame rests solely with the top government officials and generals for the rampant circulation of guns, which gives civilians and traders the courage to attack one another even in business centres like Mogiri.
“It is deeply troubling to see civilians and traders dying, and it is not only what we have witnessed in Mogiri. It is happening everywhere in South Sudan, fuelled by the availability of arms and ammunition that consistently come from top government officials and generals in the army,” Aguer expressed.
He emphasised that this communal violence and the highway attacks on traders adversely affect the economy of the entire country, disrupting supply chains, particularly when attacks occur in markets and trading areas, as has long been the case in Mogiri and other regions. It also undermines social trust and cooperation, weakening the social fabric of this fragile nation. Given that these atrocities are linked to setbacks, why are top government officials and generals not taking action? Undoubtedly, it jeopardises the economy of the entire nation, and the blame ultimately falls back on the top leaders.
“On 7 August 2025, a woman was caught with arms in Tonj. Where did this woman acquire the arms? Of course, from the top government officials and generals in the army,” Aguer asserted.
He reiterated that it is not just this one woman; multiple similar cases have been observed, yet to my surprise, the victims of these grave actions are released with impunity.
He added that several months ago, civilians were given guns to raid cattle in the Nyolo area of Central Equatoria, and these same cattle were then brought to the markets for sale. What do you think a community deprived of their belongings will do? Without hesitation, they will seek revenge, leading to a continuous cycle of assaults that result in full-scale unrest.
He underscored that if it were somehow possible to remove these arms and ammunition, this cycle of violence would immediately cease.
“Take the example of the Karamojong people of Uganda. They previously engaged in such behaviour, but the Ugandan government took decisive action to remove arms and ammunition from them, and now Uganda is peaceful. The substantial evidence is that people and vehicles move at night in Uganda without fear, which is not the case here in what we call the young nation,” Aguer testified.
He added that in Uganda and Kenya, ammunition and arms are removed from storage when soldiers are going on missions; however, a defined number of arms and ammunition is released.
In summary, he stated that the frequent attacks that have spread throughout South Sudan are prompted by top government officials who are unable to control the arms and ammunition in the hands of civilians.
