Jonglei governor appoints two MPs to legislative assembly
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March 6, 2012 (BOR) - Jonglei state governor, Kuol Manyang, appointed
two new MPs to the troubled state’s parliament on Monday to replace a
representative who joined a rebellion against the government and to
create a new MP to represent the disabled.
The appointments were made at the ceremony to sign Jonglei state’s
transitional constitution on Saturday 25 February but were only made
public on 5 March.
Matiok Lam was appointed to present Pigi South, filling the vacancy
left by John Agany who rebelled against the ruling Sudan People’s
Liberation Movement (SPLM), together with George Athor Deng, to form
the South Sudan Democratic Movement (SSDM), which is active in Jonglei
and Upper Nile.
Agany had defeated Lam to win the assembly seat but Athor lost the
gubernatorial race to incumbent Manyang in the April 2010 general
elections and started a rebellion, persuading Agany to join him.
In the 2010 election Lam came second to Agany in constituency number
two of Pigi South. Lam told Sudan Tribune on Monday that he promised
to work with and for the people he represents in the assembly.
“I did not come to assembly by chance, my people elected me and that
is why I was number two in the list during the elections. I will
continue working for them”, said Lam.
According to Lam, John Agany is coming back to join the government of
South Sudan once again. “John Agany is coming back. He is still in the
bush now but he will join us since he has signed an agreement with
South Sudan government”, he said.
George Athor, the leader of the 2010 rebellion, was killed in December
2011 in Central Equatoria State by South Sudan’s army (SPLA),
according to the government. The SSDM claim that Athor was killed on a
trip to Uganda and that Kampala is implicated in his death. Both Juba
and Kampala deny this. The South Sudanese government say Athor was
undertaking a recruitment campaign when he was shot in a fire fight
with the military.
In late February South Sudan’s government announced that it has signed
a peace deal with the SSDM’s new leader Peter Kuol Chol Awan who was
elected to replace Athor in January 2012.
But the SSDM has denied signing the peace deal adding that Awan had
already left the rebel group when he signed the deal. John Olony
claims to be the new leader of the SSDM. He says Awan and other
signatories to the deal defected in early February, prior to the
signing, and that they no longer represent the leadership of the SSDM.
It is thought that many of those who rebelled against the government
are now looking to strike deals with the government and accept the
amnesty offered by President Salva Kiir.
MP FOR DISABILITY
The other MP appointed by Jonglei governor Kuol Manyang was Deng
Ajang, who is responsible for representing people with disabilities.
While addressing the press conference outside the state assembly on
Monday 5 March, Ajang said he will start his work by identifying
people with disabilities.
He said that people with disabilities are important and “should
contribute to the development of the state”. Ajang, the former
director for the war disabled commission in Jonglei, said the
government should help people with disabilities.
Many veterans of South Sudan’s war with north Sudan suffer long term
disabilities from the conflict. A 2005 peace gave South Sudan the
right to vote for independence, which they opted for in 2011.
CONSTITUTION
Despite the appointments the Jonglei assembly is still one short of
its full capacity of 50 as the MP for Pigi, Gatjang Awuol, has not
been replaced after he died last year.
Jonglei’s minister of legal affairs, Mayen Ohka, pointed out in the
assembly on Monday that the previous constitution did not allow the
executive to fill any vacancies in the assembly due to lack of
electoral laws governing by-elections.
The current constitution has given some powers to the governor to
appoint a MP to represent people with special needs and to replace MPs
who give up their position by defecting and joining rebel groups.
(ST)
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