Manas J. Okony
Celebrations were held in the border town of Pochalla, Greater Pibor Administrative Area (GPAA), with key speakers hailing the 42nd SPLA Day as a reminiscence of hope and unity amidst political and security turmoil in parts of the country.
The SPLA day is a public holiday in South Sudan, celebrating May 16 (1983) when disgruntled southern officers with the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) mutinied in Bor and later established the Sudan People’s Liberation Army/Movement (SPLA/M).
The SPLA was an effective fighting machine, leading what became known as the Sudanese Second Civil War, culminating in South succeeding as an independent nation from the rest of Sudan in 2011.
The commander of SSPDF in Pochalla, Brigadier Arobo Ojulu Deng, a local media that the country had yet to pay back its martyrs.
“When we defected in 1983 from Pochalla, we were united despite a leadership wrangle in Ethiopia’s Pokedi area. Those of us alive today are not the true liberators but the dead,” he stated.
“However, unfortunately, the blood of the dead is crying out for peace. So let us unite, cooperate, and develop our country because it will be the best gift for our fallen heroes since 1983.”
The army commander emphasized the importance of unity for the country’s development. “Our problem is hunger, that’s we are not united. Let us bring back the unity that brought together Anyanya-II, mutinying SAF officers, and students to form SPLA in 1983.”
For his part, Captain Atem Chingath, the Pochalla National Security Services (NSS) commander, hailed SPLA Day as a national reflection and echoed call for unity.
Meanwhile, Pochalla South County Commissioner Otho Okoti said they organized celebrations despite economic hardship to celebrate martyrdom.
“The path to our independence was not an uneasy one. Many died. So, the freedom we are cherishing today was earned at a very high cost. So, we should unite and have it celebrated together,” he expressed.