One very forgetful thing is the promise often said in the swearing-in ceremonies that I will not let down the president and the people of South Sudan and that, I will do all it takes to make sure improvements are seen and felt. Another very ear-piercing promise is to cooperate and work with the incumbent staff with no or little changes, but frankly, these promises are forgotten on the very first day an appointee goes to the office to start executing duties.
During the swearing-in ceremonies, I almost say “wele”, an Arabic provocative word, to an appointee who swears like that. I am sure both God and law are mentioned one after another which are signified by the placement of the right hand on the Bible and the presence of Chief Justice, respectively. So, I do not up to now know what neutralizes the heavenly and law consequences upon an appointee who goes astray. Does God want an appointee to be sworn in only with the Bible or does the law want the same? Only God has an answer.
The first straying step is coming in with a new Office Manager, Private Secretary, Bodyguards, Watchmen and to a very bad extent, a new office chair, claiming that the former leader might have left a magical power under the chair, and it may kill me. By doing so, the remaining staff start to feel suspicious of being removed and begin to counteract your first pure trust-keeping steps leading to your downfall.
It is confusing whether or not to remove a few staff in sensitive positions as they may be traces of what led to the removal of the former official, but this happens after working with them for a while to give you time to diagnose clearly the infected surrounding tissues and come out with a specific treatment. Relieving an official is a treatment of that particular institution from a certain disease that is not far from corruption and tribalism which are the most setback and killing diseases, but the most ignored ones. These diseases have a cure that no one desires to buy, including those who sing corruption and tribalism as a song.
Though many things are forgotten, then securing a reappointment after a relieve should not be forgotten at all, and how is it secured, it is secured by working fairly so that when you are removed, you are removed uncharged following normal necessary changes in the government. The trust that President Salva Kiir bestowed upon appointees really lacks proper storage, it is not stored in a cool and dry place so the chances of it being destroyed are low. If it is not the reason that we have got a lenient and merciful president, then most of the leaders would have served only once, there would have been no reappointment as it occurs now.
Affairs of South Sudan are confusing to talk about, where on earth can a thief charged of corruption yesterday be appointed today? In which country can a relieved leader wanted by justice be backed up by the same leaders who publicly revealed his/her thievery? The answers, if told, can quake the whole country and bring another version of baseless war, therefore, the best way is to tie mouths and take pens to jot them down for future references as sons and daughters of the characters described above will emerge in much the same way their fathers and mothers are doing now.
One mistake I should not do in my life is not to repeat my father’s mistake of not going to the bush during the liberation struggle so that I should have access to J1 and other visitable places, as such I will try by all means to make sure my children enter J1 with ease and are greeted by their names when met. The appointing authority expects an appointee to keep pure the trust of the president by executing his/her duties in accordance with the constitution and agreed policies of the offices, but this is not taken into account. Even the appointment now is based on betterness because of mistrust created by thirsted leaders who immediately drool upon seeing public funds.
The author is a medical student, University of Juba.