By William Madouk
President Salva Kiir Mayardit has directed law enforcement officers to ‘urgently’ investigate, arrest and prosecute suspected perpetrators of Kajo-Keji massacre.
President Kiir regretted the incident, citing that there is no permissible reason for ill-fated murder adding that the killing happened at a time when peace is needed the most.
“There is no justifiable explanation for this uncalled-for violence at the time when the leaders of the two communities have initiated processes of returning cattle to their areas of origin” said the President.
“It is on this basis that I strongly condemn the actions of the perpetrators of these crimes, and urgently direct the law enforcement agencies to thoroughly investigate what took place in Kajo-Keji” he added.
The head of state also appealed to the affected communities to be patient and wait for the outcome of the investigation from the authorities, promising not to leave any stone unturned.
“To the grieving communities, I urge you not to allow the appeal of revenge for your losses to drive you to commit further acts of violence” Kiir cautioned.
“I am fully aware of how hard it is to cope with tragedies of this nature, but I maintain that you leave this to the authorities to resolve both the root causes of this issue as well as using the full force of the law to hold the culprits accountable” he added.
The President further extended his prayers to affected families as Almighty God continue to comfort them.
“I extend my prayers to you and call upon all South Sudanese to extend their prayers to your community so that God the Almighty can comfort you, those whose families lost their lives in this tragic incident” said President Kiir.
The Kajo-Keji killing took place on February 2, 2023 just a day before the pope Francis arrived in the country for 3 days’ ecumenical peace pilgrimage.
The alleged attack by cattle herders led to the killing of twenty-seven civilians in Kajo-Keji county of Central Equatoria state.
Recently, R-JMEC, UNMISS and the Troika countries urged the government to swiftly arrest and prosecute suspected killers of Kajo-Keji massacre.
At the same time, the cabinet of Central Equatoria State resolved to temporarily shift state government to Kajo-Keji County due to insecurity during an extraordinary meeting chaired by the governor.