SOUTHERN MPs BEWARY OF CENTRALIZED SYSTEM OF GOVERNANCE

 By: Deng Vanang

The public is aware of the ongoing painful and back breaking debates in Southern Sudan Legislative Assembly, particularly on critical issues of controversial presidential powers and type of governance the soon to be independent state should adopt in light of the transitional constitution. In the ongoing parliamentary proceedings on the key constitutional amendments, the President has lost the support of all his SPLM party deputies who double as Vice President and SSLA Speaker, Dr. Riek Machar Teny - Dhurgon and James Wani Iga respectively. The overwhelming majority of SPLM caucus that constitutes over 90% in SSLA rejected most provisions in the draft transitional constitutional document. And to cap it all, his hardened apologists normally take to their heels after running battles with inquisitive media over hard questions about some weird sections of the draft constitution. If this roundly rejection of President’s stand happened in any developed country where principled democracy works, Kiir could just take it as vote of no confidence in his Presidency, eat an ample pie  and honorably resign before waiting to be humiliated in public lectures where his sanctioned draft constitution continuously fails to win even a handful sympathizers let alone supporters.

 Armed with these ear-soothing developments, ordinary citizens are sitting pretty, gratefully satisfied that most MPs are supportive of their aspirations against the provisions that make a kingly president in South Sudan, a clear prelude to an absolute monarchy. The public is not wrong to be pessimistic either for it is guided by numerous living experiences of ethnic domination perpetrated in Southern Sudan since the time of regional governments of 1970s and 80s leading to “kokora” or division in 1983. The same ethnic domination that occurred in SPLM/A which resulted in devastating 1991 split that dragged down the speed of liberation struggle. And currently the ethnic marginalization in GOSS as decried by all South Sudanese from all walks of life. But in the latter case South Sudanese remain to hold together for the sake of waiting for the ultimate goal: independence. After highly awaited independence ceremony, there will be no reason that shall hold back South Sudanese from expressing their frustrations either through lethally waging tongues or clinched fists. The only life line to hold us back this time around from cutting ourselves into pieces shall be to have a clean break from what is now regarded as ethnic and clannish marginalization by introducing a federal system of governance currently under debate in which every citizen shall feel represented and benefitting from our immense resources with which God has endowed us. This federal system as known worldwide is characterized by the following noble concepts:

Devolution of powers and resources to lower administrative units of government, such as states, Counties, Payams and Bomas, ostensibly to avoid unnecessary concentration of powers and resources in the centre {Juba} and which may be used to favor a few regions whose sons and daughters hold the reins of power in the said centre. With resultant consequences of marginalization and under development in some regions or areas that may inevitably lead to communal violence, reformatory liberation movements or at worst completely secessionist ones.

Equitable sharing of power and resources among the communities through their administrative units, since a nation is like a mirror in which its citizens see their images and failure of some to see themselves in such reflection makes them feel not being part and parcel of such a nation state and hence, the quest to reform the system militarily or have a separate independent state of their own in which they can happily see their faces and subsequently attain their long cherished expectations can be more justifiable.

Decentralization of larger geo - political entities into manageable sizes for easier and quicker delivery of public services and if this is not done the dire consequences as currently seen shall remain accordingly: Leaders being far from their people and unable to see their suffering as services remain to be out of reach because they are in the hands of such inaccessible leaders.

Therefore based on the understanding and application of the above concepts, the MPs should not in any way listen to the ego-centric President, his ill-advisers and chauvinistic tribesmen with bad intention to remain charting the future of South Sudan that only fulfils personal, ethnic and nepotic vested interests which will eventually destroy the already tired unity of South Sudanese and which will be too late to be rescued in 2015 after what will be Kiir’s ten years legacy of ethnically corrupt and divisive rule.

Truth be told, His Excellency the President‘s crave to be made all power full is not well meant but to perpetuate such crafty and already well planned dictatorial leadership at the expense of all South Sudanese ethnic communities and hitherto manifested ploy which runs counter to our current interim constitution that we want to better improve under the pretext of bringing any present or future socio-political and economic instability under control. Simply because the President has no convincing justifications what so ever to be given the said powers and if anything his stand can only be understood as well as acceptable in the following contexts:

 If the President wants to fire both governors and MPs can only be alluded to his own silent admission that 2010 elections were either illegitimate including his for they were not free and fair or they were simply in the fulfillment of CPA as many political parties understand and agitate for the formation of a completely new coalition government of less than two years in the run up to fresh elections after the population census and demarcation of internal administrative boundaries.

If the President wishes to fire governors and MPs, he should first insert the clause in the transitional constitution that dissolves currently limited decentralized system in which elective post holders run the affairs of their states and are solely accountable and transparent to those who give them those positions and have the legal right to remove their MPs and governors through MPs based on the passage of votes of no confidence in the latter in the States’ Assemblies.

Powers of the state of emergency the President is dying to inherit in the transitional constitution can still be exercised by him through the governors whom he can influence to execute such powers in consultation with him and County Commissioners in consultation with their respective governors who will in turn consult with him before the action is taken, but also with the backing of either SSLA or State Legislative Assembly of the affected area. Since Southern Armed force, the SPLA that ensures the security of the Republic and can similarly be used to enforce the state of emergency anywhere is under him as its Commander-in-Chief.

In democracy he should be reminded or made to understand, no chief executive can arbitrarily dissolve parliament unless through the consent of the latter in response to a political crisis or when the tenure of parliament is legally over to pave way for fresh and mandatory elections as may be enshrined in the constitution.  

Deng Vanang, E-mail:dvanang@yahoo.com