Lemi

Who taught these fools journalism?! South Sudanese journalists are literally begging the government to crack down on whistleblowers and leakers. When the actual press is out here publicly lobbying to destroy freedom of expression, the whole industry is a complete joke.

This isn't just news, it's a recurring tragedy in South Sudan. When will the senseless killings over cattle and local disputes end? Where is the government's security response to protect these vulnerable communities from this cycle every few weeks?

Want real change in South Sudan? Refuse, cut, and boycott foreign humanitarian aid. Aid doesn't protect South Sudanese citizens; it protects corrupt political elites from facing the wrath of a starved, unserved population. End the managed dependency. Build domestic sovereignty. 🇸🇸

Africa is both poor and poorly governed: South Sudan shows why. A country’s wealth depends on what it produces and how effectively it is governed, not the resources under its soil. South Sudan holds vast reserves and exports roughly $3 billion in oil annually, yet its GDP per capita remains a fragile $640. Since 2011, the state has received over $25 billion in oil revenues about $130 to $150 per person per year. While not massive, it is enough to make a difference. Instead, systemic corruption and institutional failure have squandered it. The government spent $557 million over budget on presidential affairs but allocated just $29 million to health. A $2.2 billion off-budget infrastructure initiative went to connected firms with little to show for it. With civil servants unpaid and 85–87% of the population in extreme poverty, South Sudan proves that natural resource wealth is useless without sound institutions and productive governance.

Despite a government overflowing with generals far outnumbering its doctors, the Kiir administration has completely failed to strategically protect South Sudan’s national sovereignty. Years of institutional negligence have left the nation cornered and defenseless, squeezed by neighbors who hold critical leverage over its survival: Sudan attacks its borders with impunity because they control the sole oil export pipeline. Uganda encroaches on its territory while controlling the vital trade corridor that feeds it. Kenya holds its economy hostage through the Port of Mombasa and commercial banking power. A country with endless military ranks on paper is totally paralyzed in reality, unable to defend its territory or protect its citizens, because leadership chose short-term political survival over national independence.

By limiting its response to mere condemnations after the deadly Abyei market strike, the Salva Kiir government has once again proved it cannot or will not protect its citizens. Instead of defending the borders and keeping innocent people safe from foreign strikes, security forces are heavily deployed inside urban centers flexing on social media, parading weapons, and intimidating the very civilians they are sworn to protect. When a government projects power inward against its own population while standing passively by in the face of external aggression, it makes its priorities clear. South Sudanese lives are being treated as secondary, and leadership is falling dangerously short.

True reform in South Sudan starts the moment justice reaches the very top.

In South Sudan's Unity State, citizens protest foreign aid cuts instead of the leaders who looted billions in oil revenues and displaced them in the first place. Why? Because foreign NGOs respond to protests with dialogue. The government responds with violence, arrests, and state security. It is a tragic reality: citizens aren't blind to corruption they are simply trapped in a system where demanding rights from their own leaders can cost them their lives. How much more can we endure?

If a government cannot even manage the logistics of conducting a single national trial, how can it be expected to transparently and effectively run a full national presidential election this December?

Change won’t come through prayers, wishes, nepotism, or tribalism. It requires unity, strong leadership, and shared interests. Time alone resolves nothing we must turn the lessons of the past into concrete action.

Had Kalisto Lado not been repeatedly sidelined, targeted, and detained, he could have been one of the strongest contenders for the presidency today. Critics often point out his passionate style, sometimes dismissing him for speaking out of emotion. But that raw emotion isn't a flaw it is precisely what connects him to average citizens. He speaks with the frustration, urgency, and passion of everyday people who feel ignored by distant political elites. Even with his unfiltered moments, Kalisto represents a leader who actually listens to the streets, fights corruption directly, and acts rather than hides behind office doors. Compared to years of stagnant rule under President Kiir, a leader whose raw energy stems from genuine public interest will always offer a far more compelling future for South Sudan. It makes you wonder: Was he sidelined because he failed, or because the establishment realized how formidable he would be at the top?

It seems the Kiir regime deliberately avoids building our national institutions. They send students abroad for education yet don’t pay our teachers at home. They bring in foreign forces but refuse to pay our own soldiers. The same applies to every institution. How can we build a nation when the people meant to educate, protect, and serve it are treated as an afterthought?

No country in history developed through passive endurance. Progress requires unity and holding leadership accountable; our silence serves as consent to neglect and authoritarianism. Until we redirect our passion from killing each other over internal divisions, cattle, land, or tribalism toward demanding real development, South Sudan will remain trapped in hardship. Building a nation and demanding better is not about tribes, clans, or elites; it is a collective demand for the good of the whole nation.

Kakistocracy: A government or system of governance run by the worst, least qualified, or most incompetent citizens. The Kakistocrats 👇🏾