sudan
Senior Member
- Oct 17, 2012
- 266
- 11
- 51
The fecundity of the Republic of South Sudan (RoSS) as an abstract State; and as a human society; in terms of politics of domination and insurrection (PoDI); has created a new source of comprehensive instability to regional and continental peace and security. There is a danger in our drive in the RoSS; towards a determined institutionalisation of the PoDI. This PoDI has got many dimensions within the ambit of our socio-political as well as economic and financial paradigms in the RoSS. Our polity and politics are effectively being managed along the expected scenarios of African political clientelism. Primordial political tactics and strategies (PPTS) are fully in operation in the RoSS; and as necessary and sufficient conditions for the effective and efficient success of these PPTS; the RoSS must be fatally riddled with the PoDI.
The Africaniation of modern paradigms of governance in most African countries; including the RoSS means that; the phenomena of politics and economics of elites, must as of necessity; be played within the premise of zero-sum logic. This is given; because; in economics of elites; the subaltern populace are of no concern. Economic development as far as the elites are concerned; is measured within the ambit and remit of personal and group success. The group here is devoid of communitarian meaning as implied in social contract parlance. On the other hand; within the ambit of PPTS; the abstract State of South Sudan is treated within the private sphere of the ruling elites. Therefore; reaction to domination which is a tool of art and science in terms of PPTS is always the resort to insurrection. The insurrectionists also treat the abstract State of South Sudan within their private sphere; and in total isolation of the populace therein.
In politics of elites; saturated in PPTS, the abstract State is always an ally; and the perfection of the zero-sum logic is due to the fact that; any other person outside the immediate ruling elites is always an enemy of the abstract State; but, however; they, the ruling elites; are within the abstract State; so that; if an individual, outside the circle of this ruling elites; disagree with the ruling elites, he or she is considered an enemy of the State. Not only that; but the populace, who by definition in terms of politics of elites; are just political pawns in the hands of the ruling elites; are then quickly brought in as victims of this enemy as defined by the ruling elites. This is just to agitate the raw emotions of the permanent subaltern populace; as human foundations upon which, the immorality of the ruling elites rest. This is a heartless search for legitimacy and therefore, the legalisation of the illegal as it were.
The culture of zero-sum politics in the RoSS; does not allow the emergence of a constructive space and opportunity for human enlightenment. It encourages a kind of cal-de-sac political vision; which does not have a communitarian concept and practice. It is always about the self; as well as the selves in the groups. The reality of scarce resources in real life is taken as personal and group threat according to the logic of zero-sum politics which inform the politics of elites in the RoSS. Therefore; in order to succeed in this sordid political atmosphere; you have to dominate. On the other hand; in order to survive in this cruel political environment; you have to become an insurgent. Therefore; domination and insurrection become inseparable two faces of the political coin in the RoSS.
In the RoSS; PPTS are operationalised via the other institution of governance known as tribalism. The institution of tribalism (IT) is extremely rapacious in the RoSS. This rapaciousness of the IT is one of the explanatory variables for the near endemic PoDI in the RoSS. The IT has also introduced serious and dangerous doubts into many peoples minds in the RoSS, as regards the definition of liberation. Some peoples in the RoSS are genuinely wondering as to whether; others have literally replaced the near holy doctrine of self-determination with self-satisfaction. The ubiquitous phenomenon of zero-sum politics in the RoSS makes one to become overwhelmed with fear that; one is living in paradigms of organised crime. The exigencies of raw PoDI engender these feelings in many poor citizens of the RoSS.
Within the ambit of the PoDI; many individuals therein; avoid their human and legal responsibilities towards the subaltern others in the RoSS; and at the same time, these dominators want to be in charge of civil and political institutions on which many innocent human persons depend. The culture of political and civil domination is so endemic in many of our institutions in the RoSS; to the extent that, the behaviour threatens the integrity of these institutions, except that, the human persons put in charge of these institutions lack human capacity to recognise instances where integrity is in danger of being lost. One of the dangers of domination is that, once it gets hold of important political institutions in a country, it sets in a process of political decay that undermines many plans and policies upon which national development strategies are based. On the other hand; that is PPTS in play in the RoSS.
It is more alarming if domination is practiced by human persons who yesterday; were insurgents fighting against the general concept and practice of human domination. It is more hurting if these individuals were supposed to be the solid operatives and dynamos of political, civil, security, and social positive development processes in the RoSS. No human population would like to know that, political organisations upon which their lives depend are being managed by human persons who are dangerously reckless to the extent that, important matters are tackled on the basis of PoDI saturated in PPTS; and not on the basis of reasoned commitments within the available political, economic, and security resources. A political leadership that is entrenched in PoDI and saturated in PPTS is that kind of leadership that is permanently divided despite polemics and rhetoric of united leadership saturated in the spirit and letter of joint and collective responsibility needed by an effective political leadership.
Political dominators are easily recognisable by their ubiquitous culture of PoDI where they endlessly blame other people and institutions for their failures and general shortcomings. Individuals and politicians submerged in PoDI cannot deliver concrete social and political output based on their personal commitments. These types of people do not also posses the ability to recognise personal mistakes that should immediately be corrected before irreparable political and social damage is done in society. The reason why such people cannot take personal responsibility may be due to the fact that, they are political weaklings; chosen to make up some numbers; or because; they are inherently inadequate in terms of their cognitive and intellectual faculties; or because; they are extremely selfish; or because; the system is so rotten that, these people know the ball-game and do not just bother because; there is permanent deficit of political accountability; political and human integrity; genuine nationalism; and respect for the rule of law in the RoSS.
All of the above suggested factors are very frightening for any discerning citizen of the RoSS; and a citizen who wholeheartedly placed his/her trust in the political organisations including political parties that run the affairs of the RoSS. Ruling political parties in the RoSS cannot; and should not become complacent, because; they can only do so at their own political peril, especially if; constitutional conventions of democratic representations are relied upon in the selection of ruling parties; and commensurate elites for various legislative assemblies; and associated executive branches of government. A political party that is infested with people who lack the ability to know when the populace of the RoSS are hurting; and the consequences of that hurt on the political life of the nation are simply living on borrowed political time. Political parties must conduct routine political stocktaking to weed out some of this dangerous deadwood; to stop the rot from spreading to the rest of the political timber; needed for challenging political roofing for super-structural purposes for forgiveness; love; and reconciliation; in order to guarantee political independence; unity, integrity; sovereignty; and security.
If some ruling political parties in the RoSS claim that; the hitherto unitary Sudan was based on arbitrariness and artificiality of colonial exigencies; well; the nascent RoSS is also based on the arbitrariness and artificiality of the doctrine of self-determination; which has roots in political territorial and juridical soil of colonialism. The privatisation of the abstract State in the RoSS; and the creation of civil war industry in South Sudan within the remit of the PoDI is the ultimate responsibility of the ruling party in the RoSS. The ruling party has inextricably intertwined itself with the abstract State in the RoSS to the exeunt that; those who do not belong to the ruling party are immediately branded the enemies of the said ruling party and the State at once. To wash its hands clean of the PoDI; and also clean of the PPTS; the ruling party in the RoSS; through the Presidents Office; must formulate a document for ceasefire and general amnesty in the RoSS. Surely; there are many more good heads in the General Secretariat of the SPLM; who appreciate what I am saying. We cannot go on like this. Modern governments and countries are not run on the basis of enemies and saturated in PoDI sustained by PPTS.
Allegiance to political parties must not be measured by the amount of niceties that a member says about the party, nor should it be measured by the intensity of flattery words that a member is capable of heaping on the party. Personal back patting is not needed in these crucial political times that we are going through. These are times when positive political output is needed by the nation represented by its peoples, and peoples who are very politically alert despite the deceitful political calm and near flattery political acquiescence that appear to prevail. With the birth of the nascent RoSS; our political landscape has drastically changed, and the change urgently needs political change managers; who are proactive; and individuals with hands on in terms of political work that does not tolerate and depend on PoDI.
It must be reiterated here that; those who live by PoDI are everywhere in the RoSS. They are not found only in Federal institutions in Juba. They are alive and kicking in many of our States institutions and they are also dangerous for future political work that depends on sincerity and good faith politics. These are few characteristics that are conspicuously absent in many people saddled with important national tasks at our States levels. In our various States in the RoSS; there is a profound need for extremely proactive leadership to take the next political challenge. The RoSS is in need of political leadership that is imaginative within the framework of national unity and peace. In the RoSS, these types of imaginative leadership must be exercised within the remit of current political changes in the political relationship between Juba and the States.
If the unity of the peoples of the RoSS is to be given a chance; and the upper hand, we need leadership in the RoSS that is not infested with PoDI inherited from some yester years of political era with ill-defined political objectives that do not necessarily coincide with the demands of a united country with heterogeneous population that need selfless political leadership, and not politics of assets grabbing and accumulation at the expense of the downtrodden people. In the RoSS; the peoples are aware about the type of leadership that truly represent their aspiration in terms of national unity and individual freedom and equality in access to various goods and services that the government and its associated organisations can provide them.
Here in the RoSS, the peoples are not suffering from some group political amnesia; and that include their acute lack of memory; of those who have made it a habit of going to work in some of the institutions in the RoSS to acquire personal wealth that amount to robbing the people of their rightful goods and services. I do not think that these kind of people; and notwithstanding their proficiency in political skimming and sycophancy, ought to be trusted with national responsibilities anymore, they can sing the SPLM party songs for example; until their voices go soar, they must not be allowed to muddle the place once more. As I mentioned above; PoDI also affect genuine trust between us in the RoSS. Trust is the harbinger for truth and reconciliation processes in the RoSS. If this humble suggestion is to materialise into a functional and constructive methodology of popular engagement in mutual trust; more political transparency is required, if all political forces in the RoSS are to produce the kind of socio-political synergies needed for a functional polity in the RoSS, saturated in; and imbued with positive universal reciprocity.
It is a fact that, colonial and national factors contributed to the appalling socio-economic, financial, cultural, and technological underdevelopment in the RoSS. It is also a fact that, factors generated by us in the RoSS and elsewhere, contributed to the endemic underdevelopment of the RoSS. However, for us in the RoSS to continue in exclusive fashion in blaming the colonial past and contemporary politics for our ordeal, amounts to political hypocrisy and political naivety concentrated in inward looking values. The conspicuous absence of critical fora; where variables of universal underdevelopment; and PoDI and PPTS; generated by us in the RoSS are addressed; is a very disturbing phenomenon.
The Africaniation of modern paradigms of governance in most African countries; including the RoSS means that; the phenomena of politics and economics of elites, must as of necessity; be played within the premise of zero-sum logic. This is given; because; in economics of elites; the subaltern populace are of no concern. Economic development as far as the elites are concerned; is measured within the ambit and remit of personal and group success. The group here is devoid of communitarian meaning as implied in social contract parlance. On the other hand; within the ambit of PPTS; the abstract State of South Sudan is treated within the private sphere of the ruling elites. Therefore; reaction to domination which is a tool of art and science in terms of PPTS is always the resort to insurrection. The insurrectionists also treat the abstract State of South Sudan within their private sphere; and in total isolation of the populace therein.
In politics of elites; saturated in PPTS, the abstract State is always an ally; and the perfection of the zero-sum logic is due to the fact that; any other person outside the immediate ruling elites is always an enemy of the abstract State; but, however; they, the ruling elites; are within the abstract State; so that; if an individual, outside the circle of this ruling elites; disagree with the ruling elites, he or she is considered an enemy of the State. Not only that; but the populace, who by definition in terms of politics of elites; are just political pawns in the hands of the ruling elites; are then quickly brought in as victims of this enemy as defined by the ruling elites. This is just to agitate the raw emotions of the permanent subaltern populace; as human foundations upon which, the immorality of the ruling elites rest. This is a heartless search for legitimacy and therefore, the legalisation of the illegal as it were.
The culture of zero-sum politics in the RoSS; does not allow the emergence of a constructive space and opportunity for human enlightenment. It encourages a kind of cal-de-sac political vision; which does not have a communitarian concept and practice. It is always about the self; as well as the selves in the groups. The reality of scarce resources in real life is taken as personal and group threat according to the logic of zero-sum politics which inform the politics of elites in the RoSS. Therefore; in order to succeed in this sordid political atmosphere; you have to dominate. On the other hand; in order to survive in this cruel political environment; you have to become an insurgent. Therefore; domination and insurrection become inseparable two faces of the political coin in the RoSS.
In the RoSS; PPTS are operationalised via the other institution of governance known as tribalism. The institution of tribalism (IT) is extremely rapacious in the RoSS. This rapaciousness of the IT is one of the explanatory variables for the near endemic PoDI in the RoSS. The IT has also introduced serious and dangerous doubts into many peoples minds in the RoSS, as regards the definition of liberation. Some peoples in the RoSS are genuinely wondering as to whether; others have literally replaced the near holy doctrine of self-determination with self-satisfaction. The ubiquitous phenomenon of zero-sum politics in the RoSS makes one to become overwhelmed with fear that; one is living in paradigms of organised crime. The exigencies of raw PoDI engender these feelings in many poor citizens of the RoSS.
Within the ambit of the PoDI; many individuals therein; avoid their human and legal responsibilities towards the subaltern others in the RoSS; and at the same time, these dominators want to be in charge of civil and political institutions on which many innocent human persons depend. The culture of political and civil domination is so endemic in many of our institutions in the RoSS; to the extent that, the behaviour threatens the integrity of these institutions, except that, the human persons put in charge of these institutions lack human capacity to recognise instances where integrity is in danger of being lost. One of the dangers of domination is that, once it gets hold of important political institutions in a country, it sets in a process of political decay that undermines many plans and policies upon which national development strategies are based. On the other hand; that is PPTS in play in the RoSS.
It is more alarming if domination is practiced by human persons who yesterday; were insurgents fighting against the general concept and practice of human domination. It is more hurting if these individuals were supposed to be the solid operatives and dynamos of political, civil, security, and social positive development processes in the RoSS. No human population would like to know that, political organisations upon which their lives depend are being managed by human persons who are dangerously reckless to the extent that, important matters are tackled on the basis of PoDI saturated in PPTS; and not on the basis of reasoned commitments within the available political, economic, and security resources. A political leadership that is entrenched in PoDI and saturated in PPTS is that kind of leadership that is permanently divided despite polemics and rhetoric of united leadership saturated in the spirit and letter of joint and collective responsibility needed by an effective political leadership.
Political dominators are easily recognisable by their ubiquitous culture of PoDI where they endlessly blame other people and institutions for their failures and general shortcomings. Individuals and politicians submerged in PoDI cannot deliver concrete social and political output based on their personal commitments. These types of people do not also posses the ability to recognise personal mistakes that should immediately be corrected before irreparable political and social damage is done in society. The reason why such people cannot take personal responsibility may be due to the fact that, they are political weaklings; chosen to make up some numbers; or because; they are inherently inadequate in terms of their cognitive and intellectual faculties; or because; they are extremely selfish; or because; the system is so rotten that, these people know the ball-game and do not just bother because; there is permanent deficit of political accountability; political and human integrity; genuine nationalism; and respect for the rule of law in the RoSS.
All of the above suggested factors are very frightening for any discerning citizen of the RoSS; and a citizen who wholeheartedly placed his/her trust in the political organisations including political parties that run the affairs of the RoSS. Ruling political parties in the RoSS cannot; and should not become complacent, because; they can only do so at their own political peril, especially if; constitutional conventions of democratic representations are relied upon in the selection of ruling parties; and commensurate elites for various legislative assemblies; and associated executive branches of government. A political party that is infested with people who lack the ability to know when the populace of the RoSS are hurting; and the consequences of that hurt on the political life of the nation are simply living on borrowed political time. Political parties must conduct routine political stocktaking to weed out some of this dangerous deadwood; to stop the rot from spreading to the rest of the political timber; needed for challenging political roofing for super-structural purposes for forgiveness; love; and reconciliation; in order to guarantee political independence; unity, integrity; sovereignty; and security.
If some ruling political parties in the RoSS claim that; the hitherto unitary Sudan was based on arbitrariness and artificiality of colonial exigencies; well; the nascent RoSS is also based on the arbitrariness and artificiality of the doctrine of self-determination; which has roots in political territorial and juridical soil of colonialism. The privatisation of the abstract State in the RoSS; and the creation of civil war industry in South Sudan within the remit of the PoDI is the ultimate responsibility of the ruling party in the RoSS. The ruling party has inextricably intertwined itself with the abstract State in the RoSS to the exeunt that; those who do not belong to the ruling party are immediately branded the enemies of the said ruling party and the State at once. To wash its hands clean of the PoDI; and also clean of the PPTS; the ruling party in the RoSS; through the Presidents Office; must formulate a document for ceasefire and general amnesty in the RoSS. Surely; there are many more good heads in the General Secretariat of the SPLM; who appreciate what I am saying. We cannot go on like this. Modern governments and countries are not run on the basis of enemies and saturated in PoDI sustained by PPTS.
Allegiance to political parties must not be measured by the amount of niceties that a member says about the party, nor should it be measured by the intensity of flattery words that a member is capable of heaping on the party. Personal back patting is not needed in these crucial political times that we are going through. These are times when positive political output is needed by the nation represented by its peoples, and peoples who are very politically alert despite the deceitful political calm and near flattery political acquiescence that appear to prevail. With the birth of the nascent RoSS; our political landscape has drastically changed, and the change urgently needs political change managers; who are proactive; and individuals with hands on in terms of political work that does not tolerate and depend on PoDI.
It must be reiterated here that; those who live by PoDI are everywhere in the RoSS. They are not found only in Federal institutions in Juba. They are alive and kicking in many of our States institutions and they are also dangerous for future political work that depends on sincerity and good faith politics. These are few characteristics that are conspicuously absent in many people saddled with important national tasks at our States levels. In our various States in the RoSS; there is a profound need for extremely proactive leadership to take the next political challenge. The RoSS is in need of political leadership that is imaginative within the framework of national unity and peace. In the RoSS, these types of imaginative leadership must be exercised within the remit of current political changes in the political relationship between Juba and the States.
If the unity of the peoples of the RoSS is to be given a chance; and the upper hand, we need leadership in the RoSS that is not infested with PoDI inherited from some yester years of political era with ill-defined political objectives that do not necessarily coincide with the demands of a united country with heterogeneous population that need selfless political leadership, and not politics of assets grabbing and accumulation at the expense of the downtrodden people. In the RoSS; the peoples are aware about the type of leadership that truly represent their aspiration in terms of national unity and individual freedom and equality in access to various goods and services that the government and its associated organisations can provide them.
Here in the RoSS, the peoples are not suffering from some group political amnesia; and that include their acute lack of memory; of those who have made it a habit of going to work in some of the institutions in the RoSS to acquire personal wealth that amount to robbing the people of their rightful goods and services. I do not think that these kind of people; and notwithstanding their proficiency in political skimming and sycophancy, ought to be trusted with national responsibilities anymore, they can sing the SPLM party songs for example; until their voices go soar, they must not be allowed to muddle the place once more. As I mentioned above; PoDI also affect genuine trust between us in the RoSS. Trust is the harbinger for truth and reconciliation processes in the RoSS. If this humble suggestion is to materialise into a functional and constructive methodology of popular engagement in mutual trust; more political transparency is required, if all political forces in the RoSS are to produce the kind of socio-political synergies needed for a functional polity in the RoSS, saturated in; and imbued with positive universal reciprocity.
It is a fact that, colonial and national factors contributed to the appalling socio-economic, financial, cultural, and technological underdevelopment in the RoSS. It is also a fact that, factors generated by us in the RoSS and elsewhere, contributed to the endemic underdevelopment of the RoSS. However, for us in the RoSS to continue in exclusive fashion in blaming the colonial past and contemporary politics for our ordeal, amounts to political hypocrisy and political naivety concentrated in inward looking values. The conspicuous absence of critical fora; where variables of universal underdevelopment; and PoDI and PPTS; generated by us in the RoSS are addressed; is a very disturbing phenomenon.
