Warrap activists collect signatures to remove governor - Article <http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article48878#tabs-1> - Comments (16)<http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article48878#tabs-2>
[image: email] Email<http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?iframe&page=enviar_email_articulo&id_article=48878> [image: print] Print<http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?iframe&page=imprimable&id_article=48878> [image: pdf]Save<http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?page=spipdf&spipdf=spipdf_article&id_article=48878&nom_fichier=article_48878> [image: separation] [image: increase] <http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article48878#> [image: decrease] <http://www.sudantribune.com/spip.php?article48878#> [image: separation] [image: separation] ------------------------------ November 20, 2013 (JUBA) - Community activists acting in collaboration with politicians from South Sudan’s governing Sudan People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM) in Warrap state are collecting signatures from citizens across the six counties to remove governor Nyandeng Malek Dielic from the office, *Sudan Tribune* has been told. The governor has been heavily criticised for recently appointing a new cabinet without referring her selection to the Warrap state parliament for approval. This contradicts the state’s constitution. A legislator who did not want to be identified told *Sudan Tribune* on Wednesday that “there is much we still do not know about what the leadership is going to do”, adding that “it is the right of every citizen of Warrap state to come out and defend the constitution”. “Article 4 (2) of the transitional constitution condemns violation of the constitution and invites every citizen to defend it. This is a constitutional right. We, therefore, as the representatives of our people call on every citizen to protect the constitution. They should not shy away”, the MP said. The lawmaker said the actions of governor Malek were getting “dangerously close” to “impeachable offences”, calling on citizens to support Malek’s removal from the gubernatorial post so as to preserve peace and unity. “I know our people love their constitution and [are] proud of the rule of law. This time, the stakes are higher. If the governor is allowed to ignore or violate constitutional provisions, the future governors will certainly assume the same power to dictate what the law is and there will be no point to elect the members of parliament to make laws if a governor picks and chooses what to enforce. In this country, where millions [of] lives were lost in search for democracy, the rule of law is supposed to be king, not individuals in the position of authority”, the legislator said. He said the parliament had resorted to collecting signatures from Warrap citizens as they were expecting the top-level institutions to be slow in reacting to their demands. Traditional leaders, as well as women and youth representatives were among those involved in collecting signatures, the legislator said. The petition follows discussion between SPLM leaders in the state and counties. Another legislator expressed surprise over the president Salva Kiir’s reluctance to remove the governor despite repeated calls for her to be relieved of her position with immediate effect. Thirty-three MPs voted in favour of impeaching the governor for wrong doings, with 15 opposed. The MP said that the outcome of the vote confirmed that the governor was “guilty of wrong doing”. MPs accuse Malek of theft, abuse of office and administrative negligence that led to the deaths of 358 people in 2011. The lawmaker said the governor had deliberately violated constitutional steps with the formation of the cabinet and by refusing to take it to parliament for vetting and approval in accordance to Articles 56 (2) g, 106 (1) (3) and 111 (2). “In [the] SPLM constitution, when you are not a chairperson of that level of government and you are a governor wanting to form a cabinet, you must consult with [the] leaders of SPLM at that level. All the constitutional appointments, including the cabinet, must be taken to parliament according to article 56 of state constitution. Governor Nyandeng deliberately decided to violate the constitution, so our people have decided to remove her”, he said. *POLITICAL DAMAGE* The legislator said they had done all they could to ensure that the constitution of the state was protected but that the top- level leadership within the central government had been slow to act, warning that the lack of immediate action would have “irreparable political damage”. “For us, we have already done our parts and have been waiting the decision of national leadership. We say this because we are not the only politicians responsible for the affairs of this country. We have good number of national MPs in Juba, including the president himself. All of us will be accounted and held responsible for the consequences of keeping governor Nyandeng in power in Warrap. People are suffering under her poor administration and we are busy keeping her”, the lawmaker said. However, Luka Lual Madhang, Warrap’s minister of youth and sports, downplayed the significance of the political campaign collecting signatures to remove the governor. In a statement published *The Citizen* newspaper on Wednesday 20 November, Madhang accused the acting chairperson of the SPLM in the state of holding personal grudges against the state governor because he was removed from office. He also denied that the letter of withdrawal was approved by the entire SPLM leadership in the state, asserting it was written by individuals that do not represent the party leadership. Madhang denied the petition had been approved by the SPLM leadership in the state, saying it was written by individuals who did not represent the party. “It is not true that the SPLM leadership sat to approve [the] withdrawal of confidence from the governor. I am the assistant secretary for information and was consulted. This means it was something unofficial. It was only the work of individuals who have personal grudges with the state governor because they were not appointed”, said Madhang. (ST) -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "South Sudan Info - The Kob" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to [email protected]. To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/SouthSudanKob/CAJb14oq%2BgScFouLGgE4yEec20qe7epx96cscPrQAM6Fou%2BTkZg%40mail.gmail.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/groups/opt_out.
