By Adia Jildo
Eastern Equatoria State Minister of information has refuted and condemned claims against him by cattle herding personalities amid aiding community on cattle raiding activities in the State.
This came following statements from one cattle herding community accusing the State Minister of Information for allegedly rendering assistance to one cattle raiding group as a mechanism to favour them.
Speaking to No. 1 Citizen Daily Newspaper yesterday, Patrick Oting Eastern Equatoria State Minister of Information refuted and condemned the claims from the cattle herding community of Bor on provision of assistance terming it as false citation among cattle keeping communities.
“Our brothers from Dinka Bor are accusing the state government that the state government especially the governor and commissioner that they have mobilized the youth of Murle to go and raid they cows and kill their people in Mugali,” he said.
Furthermore, Patrick said that the statement made by Bor herding Community was false and henceforth condemned it by stating the negative impacts of cattle raid among cattle keepers resulting into loss of lives within the state.
“We also lost many cows in Ikoto to the raiders of around 827 cows which had been raided between two communities within the communities in Eastern Equatoria. Three days ago, another raiding took place again in Ikoto where people lost their lives and cattle were,” he said.
He added that that cattle raiding has been one of the common activities among cattle herding groups in the Country that existed for a period of time.
He underscored that authorities should not be blamed amid favoring a certain community in regard to cattle raid since other communities in the state were involved in the cattle herding activities.
He however reiterated that the government of Eastern Equatoria State has been doing all it could to control the issue of cattle raiding activities in the state and country at large.
Patrick called on the cattle keeping communities to embrace peace and work towards attaining it with positive acts.