Opinion: The South Sudanese Authorities are afraid of foreign journalists telling stories!

If the South Sudanese government trust in the free speech, liberty and justice, they wouldn’t have done what they did today. If they had trusted and seen what the foreign journalists do in their Republic. The South Sudanese government under President Salva Kiir Mayardit must be afraid of what it does in provinces as the skirmishes between the SPLA and the rebles. These stories together with the famine and man-made drought has clearly been evident with the refugee crisis and the added food aid through corridors of Sudan. These are the stories that the SPLM/A-IG are afraid of now! Take a brief look!

The Media Authority has banned about twenty foreign journalists from entering or operating within the country for reporting what it termed “unsubstantiated and unrealistic stories”, the Managing Director of the regulatory body has said. Early, the chairman of the communications department in the secretariat of the steering committee of the national dialogue, Alfred Taban said that Media Authority has no right to bans Journalists. “The Media Authority law does not give this body the right to deny visas to Journalists on the ground that they write articles critical of the government,” Alfred said” (Danis, 2017).

Certainly, the South Sudanese government are afraid of something, they want to hide their policies as United Nations Experts and other Monitoring teams can report, but they would not do is as much as journalists. The local journalists would also fear the state and the repercussion of the media. That was supported by: “Important to note Media Authority, now taking visible role in #SouthSudan media crackdown, was supported by UNESCO, Scandanavian embassies” (Daniel Van Oudenaren, 07.06.2017). So even the free-nations of Scandinavia are clearly stopping the free-press together with a UN organization. This is flabbergasting!

That the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU) and the National Dialogue will not get it their fair coverage, as the government will make sure the message of get to the press. But some critical stories will be expelled, as the journalists who covers stories not encouraged by the government will be silenced. The stories of violence and of the rebellions. Will not be taken to accord, as the victories of the SPLM/A-IG will be covered and spelled out. Since the others media-houses will fear spreading the reports who are in conflict with the message that President Kiir wants.

If they had trusted the media, they wouldn’t have banned foreign journalists. They are fearing and afraid of coverage of the Republic. They cannot manage the coverage and stories. The Republic of South Sudan, will now only have the message and propaganda of the SPLM-IG. Unless, people leak to people like me. Peace.

Reference:

Danis, Daniel – ‘Media Authority bans about 20 foreign journalists’ (07.06.2017) link: http://www.eyeradio.org/media-authority-bans-20-foreign-journalists-country/

Kenya: Mumias Sugar letter – “Ref: Receipt of KSHS. 239M from (SDL) and Financing of Hon. Benjamin Washiali Jubilee Campaigns.” (13.04.2017)

South Sudan: The Leaked Points to be Discussed in Addis Ababa at the 12th June 2017 IGAD Summit (05.06.2017)

1. August 2015 Peace Agreement has fundamentally failed and there is no government in Juba Implementing it. What has to be done?

2. Roadmap to the new political process is needed and must be inclusive. What steps needed to be taken?

3. Returning of SPLM/A-IO leader Dr. Machar to South Sudan as a signatory to peace agreement has to be considered.

4. National Dialogue has to be used as a supplementary to August Peace Agreement not a replacement to a signed peace agreement.

5. Humanitarian crisis in South Sudan becomes worsening ever in African Continent. It needs urgent responses.

6. Government’s National Dialogue and unilateral ceasefire did not yield any improvement to the conflict so far. IGAD-backed by international community has a mandatory to take urgent action before genocide takes shape in South Sudan.

6. Taban Deng Gai’s break away group has to choose either SPLM-IO led by Former First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny-Dhurgon or SPLM-IG led by Salva Kiir Mayardit in order to avoid a vacuum for confusions during the implementation of peace agreement.

IGAD-backed by international community pledged to lead and create a lasting peace ever witness in South Sudan.

South Sudan: SPLM IO MPs of Eastern Jikany in South Sudan Parliament- Transitional National Legislative Assembly (TNLA) on the incident that happened at various places in Maiwut state (05.06.2017)

South Sudan: The SPLM(G10) position paper from Nairobi, Kenya (02.06.2017)

South Sudan: Dr. Riek Machar’s close protection Bodyguards defected to H. E. Gen. Taban Deng Gai (02.06.2017)

Today 2 June 2017, the SPLM/SPLA-IO under the leadership of strong and charismatic leader His Excellency General Taban Deng Gai, First Vice President of the Republic of South Sudan, Chairman and Commander in Chief of the SPLM/ SPLA-IO received and warmly welcome two Senior Officers from the Intelligent Bureau of Riek Machar.

1. Col. Khan Elijah Hon Top, Spy Chief of the Body Guards of Riek Machar.

2. Lt. Col. Koryom Wang Chiok, Chief Accountant of the Body Guards of Riek Machar.

The two comrades are fine military officers who have contributed immensely to the success of the movement.

The leadership warmly welcomes them back to the fold of the movement.

End

SPLM-IO: Talking Notes in the Teleconference with the UN Security Council on the Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan (31.05.2017)

Two Problems with SGR: First the Cost of Phase 1 and President Kenyatta cowardly blocking of Gov. Joho!

President Uhuru Kenyatta is a coward for not letting the Governor of Mombasa County, the Orange Democratic Movement leader Hassan Ali Joho attend the launch today of the Freight Train at the Port Reitz Station in Mombasa. It seems the Jubilee Party cannot handle opposition and has to freeze them out. Even as the launch of the SGR was happening, the Police escorted him away.

Maybe because the Chinese wrote this about the Kenyan Railway:

Kiraithe added that the government, through the ministries of finance, transport and environment, hasbeen heavily involved in accelerating the completion of the SGR built by the China Road and Bridge Corporation.“But the infrastructure is for Kenyans and has been achieved to improve our living standards,” Kiraithe said. In 2013, President Xi Jinping and his Kenyan counterpart, Kenyatta, witnessed the signing of the memorandum of understanding on financing the Mombasa-Nairobi SGR. The Export Import Bank of China financed 80 percent of the project” (Morangi, 2017).

“I was among a group of people who wrote a letter to the president [Uhuru Kenyatta], specifically with regards to the value for money proposition,” political analyst Tom Mboya told RFI on Tuesday. At a staggering cost of nearly four billion euros–almost entirely funded by China’s Export Import bank– just for the first phase linking the capital Nairobi to the port city Mombasa, there is reason to be concerned, reckons economist Aly-Khan Satchu” (Okello, 2017).

The Presidency statement on it:

President Kenyatta, who was flanked by Deputy President William Ruto and First Lady Margaret Kenyatta, said every Kenyan should be proud of the Standard Gauge Railway. “I call upon all Kenyans whatever their political beliefs to celebrate, today we should be together holding hands in celebrations,” said the President moments after the cargo train pulled alongside the Presidential Dias waiting for the flag off. It was song and dance as choirs played patriotic songs apt for the moment. “This is the Kenya we seek and this is the Kenya we want our children to inherit from us and their children to inherit from them,” said President Kenyatta amid applause, cheers and ululation. President Kenyatta said the SGR will make the port of Mombasa more efficient and will enhance the performance of the facility where the Jubilee Government has invested more than Sh60 billion in the last four years” (Presidency, 2017).

By the Statement made by the Presidency yesterday means that the Government spent: 60bn times 4 Shs. 240bn on the Standard Gauge Railway. Still, the East African reported differently earlier in the month: “So far, Sh327 billion has been spent on the first phase of the railway between Mombasa and Nairobi and Sh150 billion on the Nairobi-Naivasha section. With a national population of about 46 million, every Kenyan is set to owe China Sh18,413 in SGR debt once the deal is sealed” (…) “The SGR has been President Kenyatta’s pet project since he came to power” (Mutambo & Omondi, 2017). So if this is true, than the Presidency are dropping different numbers than the papers. Clearly the government trying to look more efficient, than what they are in reality. This should worry since most of the building of the SGR are based on development loans from the Exim Bank.

Is this why the words of and address to this from Joho is so striking:

In the light of this, we hereby demand that

1. That the government release the terms of the contract with the Chinese Exim Bank, the details of disbursement and attendant relavant information

2. The Government of Kenya release all details of the Take or Pay contract between KPA and the financiers? What is the goods threshold and the responsibility of collection of the these fees.

3. Due to conflicting reports, the government clarify in details all charges related to goods and their destinations.

4. The government clarify the method of nomination of goods for rail and the point and implementation of charges.

5. The government clarify the extinction date of the Railway Development Levy on goods and come clean on the amounts collected since.

6. The government release the terms of the port concession, all monies paid and the details of the contract

7. The the Government clarify the details of site selection of Naivasha as a dry port. The feasibility study and the project appraisal report.

8. That the government release the “Willingness to Pay” survey of the goods for meant for railway and the feasibility report of the proposed Naivasha Special Economic Zone.

9. And that the Jubilee government show us their plan for Mombasa” (Hon. Ali Hassan Joho, 31.05.2017).

By all means the Governor of Mombasa wants to know the realities of the SGR, but that is something every single Kenyan deserves as this is the pet-project of Kenyatta. Kenyatta might be proud of Phase 1, but can the government carry the price of the trains and lines. Or is this is a stunt for development?

That the Governor was blocked from the Train Station that is opened in his county, as he was blocked from the relaunch of the ferries in March 2017. Shows that the Jubilee cannot handle opposition or their eyes on their projects. They are so initiated to represent the whole community, that if the community and citizens elects opposition. Than they are not allowed to enter public displays and their launching of projects. This has now been proven twice. That the Jubilee cannot handle NASA leadership or ODM party leaders. If they could than they would have entertained and made it possible for Governor Joho to be at the state functions as he is the local elected leadership of Mombasa county. Is that hard for the President and his deputy?

But the President and his Team is cowards who cannot even have the local government leadership at the launch of SGR at the Port Reitz Station. Peace.

Reference:

Morangi, Lucie – ‘ Chinese-built SGR to improve Kenya’s global standing’ (30.05.2017) link:http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/world/2017-05/30/content_29548836.htm

Mutambo, Aggrey & Omondi, George – ‘Uhuru seeks Sh370bn more to extend railway to Kisumu’ (16.05.2017) link: http://mobile.nation.co.ke/news/Kenya-requests-for-Sh370bn-for-SGR-third-phase/1950946-3928546-15jp48i/index.html

Okello, Christina – ‘Kenya’s ambitious new railway raises cost concerns’ (31.05.2017) link: http://en.rfi.fr/africa/20170530-kenya-4bn-railway-opens-amid-controversy-kenyatta-china

Presidency – ‘New dawn for Kenya as Standard Gauge Railway rolls out services’ (30.05.2017) link: http://www.president.go.ke/2017/05/30/new-dawn-for-kenya-as-standard-gauge-railway-rolls-out-services/

UNHCR refers Kenya staff to police after internal investigation finds fraud at Kakuma camp (31.05.2017)

UNHCR has separately launched an independent management review which has made a number of recommendations to accompany the disciplinary actions being taken against those found to have committed malfeasance.

GENEVA, Switzerland, May 31, 2017 – UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, is implementing a number of measures to strengthen management and oversight of its Kakuma operation in Kenya in light of an internal investigation that found fraud and other serious misconduct.

UNHCR’s investigation was prompted after allegations were received of fraud, corruption, threats and intimidation at the camp.

The investigation confirmed the involvement of five staff, against whom a range of actions have now been taken. These include, in three cases, referral by the UN’s Office of Legal Affairs to the Kenyan police for criminal prosecution – so far resulting in one arrest. Two of the five have resigned, and disciplinary processes are under way against the remaining three.

UNHCR has separately launched an independent management review which has made a number of recommendations to accompany the disciplinary actions being taken against those found to have committed malfeasance.

As further measures to address the situation, and in parallel with the investigation, we immediately suspended normal resettlement submissions from Kakuma and reviewed processes, although no further irregularities have been found. An information campaign is under way, and we are pursuing matters with our partners, including working with them to carry out their own investigations and to deepen anti-fraud awareness and prevention measures.

“Protecting lives is at the core of UNHCR’s work, which makes the betrayal of trust we have seen in this case so galling,” said UNHCR Assistant High Commissioner for Refugees George Okoth-Obbo. “The management review has provided us an understanding of what happened and allows us now to enhance a number of preventive, assurance, response and corrective measures in management, oversight and operational delivery.”

FAO and WFP special report of 26th May 2017 explains the reasons for the famine and food insecurity in South Sudan

The Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) and the World Food Program (WFP) have gone through the basic problems of food production and general markets for it in South Sudan. Both FAO and WFP are explaining the food insecurity and reasons why. The conflict is the important factor, but there are many other reasons as well. But when people are fleeing their small-farms from rebels and the army. In South Sudan it is also the lacking rain-fall and the insecurity have been classified as famine. But to give you a sense from the report, these quotes, which explain a dire situation. This should be taken seriously, as the reports from these United Nations Organizations are the ones following the farmers on the ground and have organized supplies of specialized seeds. Take a look!

Hyperinflation:

Hyperinflation and limited import capacity due to insecurity and shortage of foreign currency have severely impacted market functioning and the availability of food commodities. Cereal prices increased up to ten times in 2016 following the sharp devaluation of the local currency and the increasing transport costs. The number of traders and the level of their food stocks have declined sharply during the second semester of 2016, with strong reduction in food availability and variety” (FAO & WFP, P: 7, 2017).

Food Insecurity:

Food insecurity has reached new records during 2016 (67 percent of the population at harvest time, with over 14 percent severely food insecure), twice the pre-conflict levels and a marked worsening from the same time last year, when food insecurity stood at 49 percent (12 percent severely food insecure). Only one-quarter (26 percent) of the households were found to have acceptable food consumption. The coming lean period of mid-2017 will likely see food insecurity levels rise further” (FAO & WFP, P: 7, 2017).

Cereal Production:

As in previous assessments, post-harvest losses and seed use for sowing in 2017 are assumed to account for 20 percent of total production, leaving a net amount of about 826 000 tonnes available for local consumption. This result is about 10 percent below the output obtained in 2015 and slightly below the last five-year average production estimates. The decline in 2016 is essentially due to displacements of farmers and disruption of farming activities following the increased insecurity and violence since July” (FAO & WFP, P: 23, 2017).

With a projected population of about 12 million in mid-2017, the overall cereal deficit in the January-December 2017 marketing year is estimated at about 500 000 tonnes, over 30 percent above the deficit estimated for 2016” (FAO & WFP, P: 7, 2017).

The Conflict of 2017:

Conflict in 2017 – The major factor influencing the general food security situation during 2017 remains the violent conflict that started in late December 2013. Not only this has not been resolved, the intensity of the conflict increased in mid-2016 (July) and is continuing into 2017. While conflict affected mostly the Greater Upper Nile Region (states of Upper Nile, Unity and Jonglei) during the initial stage of the conflict. However, this has spread out across the country and in particular spread into the major producing areas of the country, such as Western and Central Equatoria and neighbouring areas of Eastern Equatoria. Western Bahr el Ghazal has also been affected by fighting. These situations have geographically wider repercussions: disruption of farming leads to drops in national crop production, while its impacts on markets and trade routes lead to problems in the supply of staple foods to the more remote areas of the country” (FAO & WFP, P: 36, 2017).

In January 2017, 32.3 percent of the population of South Sudan (about 3.8 million people) was classified in the IPC Phases 3 (Crisis), 4 (Emergency) and 5 (Catastrophe). In the lean period of mid-2017, this proportion is likely to rise to 46.7 percent (5.5 million people). The most serious situations are in Unity State (where the population in some counties is facing famine or risk of famine) and Northern Bahr el Ghazal – over 50 percent of the population is in IPC Phases 3 to 5. The situation is expected to worsen during the lean period of 2017 (up to July)” (FAO & WFP, P: 9, 2017).

This is all worrying and the conflict edges the crisis with natural effect. From the problems with production of cereals, to hyper-inflation together with the areas where the Republic are classified as famine. All of this is combination of downward spiral no nation want to be hold-in. The Republic of South Sudan and it’s citizens are in turmoil as the farmers cannot plow their dirt and raise their seeds. All major cultivated areas got affected by the crisis and conflict, this ha by all means been reasons for the food insecurity. If people don’t see it and isn’t worried that the production area for food has been the battleground between government and rebels. So the farmers there would be in crossfire. So if these areas and states doesn’t see peace, than the production will not rise to the needed levels. That should be key importance and be needed policy by the government to make sure they are producing enough food for their population. Peace.

Reference:

FAO & WFP – ‘S P E C I A L R E P O R T – FAO/WFP CROP AND FOOD SECURITY ASSESSMENT MISSION TO SOUTH SUDAN’ (26.05.2017)