South Sudan's English Daily Newspaper
"We Dare where others fear"
By Benjamin Takpiny
The Executive Director of the Center for Peace and Advocacy (CPA), Ter Manyang Gatwech, has expressed pessimism on the outcome for the upcoming Governor’s forum due to slow progress in the implementation of previous outcomes.
“There is a problem either within the office of the President or among the ten Governors and three Administrators, regarding the implementation of the resolutions from the 6th and 7th Governor’s Forums,”Gatwech said in a statement issued on Sunday.
He said that resolutions at this forum have become paper tigers hanging on office shelves without being implemented, adding that the resolutions of the upcoming 8th Governor’s Forum scheduled for Monday should awaken attendees to take action on previous commitments at past forums.
Gatwech said that last year, the Governors at the forum were tasked with implementing peace initiatives to foster reconciliation among the divided people of South Sudan, adding none of them have implemented any of the resolutions from these forums.
“The forum should not serve as a platform where government officials waste significant amounts of money on the Governor’s Forum, which fails to provide meaningful resolutions that benefit ordinary citizens,” he said.
Gatwech emphasized that the 8th Governor’s Forum should concentrate on the speedy implementation of the security arrangement, enactment of the permanent constitutional-making process, holding elections, and conducting the long -awaited population census. In addition to the repatriation of South Sudanese refugees from neighboring countries, as well as the situation of internally displaced persons (IDPs).
“Political elites must honor their words and actions to earn the trust of the people on national issues. The majority of South Sudanese are subjected to extreme poverty due to the lack of job opportunities created by the Revitalized Transitional Government of National Unity (RTGoNU). Without decent jobs, national security is at risk, as many young people are likely to contribute to instability in the country,” Gatech said.
Gatwech urged the President and his five Vice Presidents to follow up on the implementation of the past resolutions of the Governor’s Forum in collaboration with civil Society organizations engaged in advocacy in the country.
