Page 16 - Nile Explorer Issue 12

by embracing a two-term limit for the
president that did not exist before.
The National Dialogue Conference
unanimously adopted a two five-year
term for the president.
Furthermore, the conference resolved to
a adopt a mixed federal system with full
political, administrative, and financial
powers to the states and restricts
federal interference in state affairs, but
recommended the establishment of the
32 states that was a major contention
before the Transitional Government of
National Unity (TGoNU) was formed in
February. Inside the South Sudan National Dialogue Conference held at Freedom Hall in
The people of South Sudan also Juba, South Sudan from 3-17 November 2020. Photo: South Sudan National
ephasised the strict adherence to the Dialogue Secretariat.
separation of powers among the three Ninety per cent of South Sudan’s land governed be it on land, security and
arms of government: the executive, mass (640,000 square Km) is considered economy.
legislature, and the judiciary and further arable, yet only four per cent is cultivated, “We should remind ourselves, and the
recommended credible independence with about 80 per cent of South Sudanese politicians that they should listen to the
of the legislature and the judiciary households depending on subsistence people because, in a few short years, we
from executive interference. They also agriculture for their livelihood. will have general elections here and the
adopted the presidential term limit of people will decide who their leaders
two five years. South Sudan has been spending a are going to be for the future,” said Mr
On security, the conference called for meager $34 million to the agricultural Shearer.
sector, a far cry from the African Union-
reforms and transformation of the inspired Maputo Protocol that requires On National Cohesion, the conference
through creation of a professional countries on the continent to allocate 10 resolved to urgently that the government
National Army and other organized per cent of their budgets to agriculture should expedite the enactment of
forces, through recruitment of South annually. legislation on the establishment of truth,
Sudanese from all regions and ethnic healing and reconciliation commission.
communities. Currently, the government has The Co-Chairman of the National
But the conference was seriously embarked on ensuring food security and Dialogue, Angelo Beda, could not
sufficiency. The focus is the greenbelt
concerned about the impact of small areas — Greater Equatoria and Western have been more candid on the national
arms and light weapons in the hands Bahrel-el-Ghazal. With quick maturing cohesion. He pointed fingers the Sudan
of civilians and strongly recommends crops, these areas can have harvests up People’s Liberation Movement (SPLM)
comprehensive and simultaneous to three times a year. for failing the nascent country and
civilian disarmament across the country. plunging it into turmoil.
President Kiir lunched a national Land ownership, on the other hand, “Prominent among the issues we found
remains traditional and locals are still
disarmament programme in September, wary of foreigners seeking large tracts went wrong, is that the people at the
but it has met some resistance from for commercial farming. Land rights—a grassroots blamed the crises in the
some communities who feel that they major factor of production—was a key country on the failure of leadership,
will be left exposed if they give up their factor in the 21-year SPLM war against particularly under the ruling party, the
arms and their neighbours don’t. the north. Sudan People’s Liberation Movement
On the economy, the conference—apart South Sudan resisted the Unregistered (SPLM)”.
from calling upon the government to Land At of 1970, which stipulated that He continues; “When we reference SPLM,
restore macro-economic stability— any unoccupied land belongs to the we are talking about the SPLM before it
resolved to diversify of the economy government, and Civil Transition Act of broke into the numerous factions as we
by making agriculture the engine of 1990, which also denied any recognition know today. The SPLM took the helm
growth and using oil revenues to fuel of customary land rights and asserted of power in South Sudan following the
this engine through investment in roads, that the land in the country belongs to signing of the Comprehensive Peace
telecommunication and electricity; Allah and the state was only the inheritor. Agreement (CPA) in January 2005. You
South The Special Representative of the UN cannot say you are SPLM-IO, FD, SSOA,
you are all part of it because the people
South Sudan still depends of 98 percent Secretary-General David Shearer, who broke, were at the top”.
of revenue earnings from oil exports, yet reminded the South Sudan politicians The government is also required to
the country has vast arable land that can that the ordinary people want to have undertake repatriation of the almost 1.2
feed the entire eastern Africa. a real say in the way the country is million refugees in the neighbouring

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