South Sudan at Heart

Who can contain the dire situation in South Sudan? By: Abraham Daljang Maker Freedom is what everyone was longing for in South Sudan. From 1955-1972, the slogan was the same. “We need to be free and determine our destiny.” The futility of 1972 Addis-Ababa agreement showed its ugly face when the South Sudan army was assimilated into the Sudan National army. This prompted another movement in 1983 leading to the loss of estimated two million lives; however, the best fruit of this struggle was the birth of a new nation. Hosting the national flag was greeted with ululations and chanting of the song of freedom especially in the National anthem.   Many of us thought that this would mark the end of suffering and the road of success and development seemed to be clear and straight. The oil money poured into few pockets and the rural populations remain in their pathetic lives and even some wounded heroes remain wondering why they lost their limbs without gaining the benefits of their sw

Great men are from a humble background Abraham Daljang Maker It took me some time to think about this peculiar thing about the issue of the great men who normally come from a humble background.   I called it peculiar because nobody expect a person whose background is low to be great but amazingly, it happens from ancient time to present.   “Who told you?” you may ask. But I want to assure you and convince you beyond reasonable doubt that many people have a humble beginning but end up being celebrants. In his book, the long walk to freedom; the former South African president, Nelson Mandela vividly tells us about his humble beginning. He spearheaded the anti-apartheid rule and became the first black president in South Africa and a noble laureate after having suffered for 27 years in prison. You and I today love him with passion; he is seen as an Icon of peace and the father of the continent. What about Moses, in the Bible? We all know how he came up, from poor Israeli w

The Niles النيلان -The price of oil in Uganda and South Sudan

The Niles النيلان -South Sudanese graduates aim to energise their tattered country

South Sudanese cautiously celebrate Obama’s win Abraham Daljang Maker KAMPALA: Many South Sudanese cheered news of Barack Obama's reelection, buoyed by the belief that the president's ancestors originated from their nation. South Sudan's president Salva Kiir joined an international chorus of congratulations last week, praising Barack Obama for an "impressive victory." Many South Sudanese cheered the news – but also called on the reelected premier to do more for the African continent. Many South Sudanese say the president's ancestors originated from their homeland. His father is from Kenya's Luo ethnic group, which is said to have originally come from South Sudan. Maker Paul, a migration officer at South Sudan's Embassy in Kampala voiced his joy at the leader “both as an African and more so a Luo whose ancestors migrated from South Sudan, centuries back,” he told The Niles. “I see him as my own brother.” However, he complained

The Niles النيلان -South Sudanese cautiously celebrate Obama’s win

We have many resources than we realized By Abraham Daljang Maker   The Transformation Development workshop which started on October 15- 2012 was a turning point in my life and indeed it has shaped my future career. As I am pursuing Master of Arts in Development studies, the training is very relevant to the field I am studying at the moment. Before I attended the workshop I used to think that there are poor and rich people on this planet; but I came to realized that each and every one of us is endowed with a lot of resources. Many people think that being rich is to have possessions and materials which are visible but we have never asked ourselves how the rich obtain their richness. One of the ways we can know that we have resources is to believe that God gave us all our abilities and intellects as a major resource we can use and exploit to get our needs and wants. Before the TD, I was not exception to those who believe that they are poor, but after having awakened my mind by

  Teresa Nyankol Mathiang was a peace Icon and a liberator By: Abraham Daljang Maker Nyankol Mathiang was a great singer who inspired all the south Sudanese during the Liberation struggle. She was a star who used the arts of music to encourage and agitate for freedom of South Sudanese.   I was stunned by the story post on the social media, Facebook that she passed on in Juba teaching hospital. I could believe what I saw; my eyes started to swelled up with tears and I could not controlled   the ball of tear which rolled down my cheeks. My brain immediately turned on the cassette of her songs which kept singing and rewind when the songs are over. Her angelic voice kept nagging me as I lay down in my bed in the afternoon, the more I controlled the flow of the songs, and the more the tap kept rewinding itself. I never knew her personally or do I have any blood relations with her but she was like a mother to me due to her wisdom she put in words. According to the news, Nyakol