By Baraka John
Senior officials from the SPLM-IO party in the Unity Government have gone into hiding after the removal of their governor, Alfred Futuyo Karaba, who also served as the party’s chairperson in Western Equatoria State. The situation has escalated into violence and intimidation, with party members claiming that the removal decree has turned into a broader assault on their presence in the state, particularly in Yambio.
Mary John Osman, the Secretary for the SPLM-IO party in Western Equatoria, stated that since the governor’s dismissal, the state has witnessed an alarming increase in attacks and the looting of party members’ properties. The violence is believed to be linked to government claims that armed groups described as “armed criminals” were behind the unrest. Osman expressed concern that the decree, intended to remove Futuyo from office, had now become a pretext to force the SPLM-IO out of the state altogether.
“Since they have fled for their safety, they have not yet returned, they are there for their own safety and they are still hunting them. And the decree was only to remove the governor, but it turned out to be something different, looting of the houses, burning of the houses. Since the decree was to remove IO away from Western Equatoria.” Mary lamented
In contrast, the acting governor of Western Equatoria, Daniel Badagbu, has sought to downplay the tensions, stating that the situation in Yambio has returned to calm. He confirmed that local markets and government offices are functioning, and that normalcy is being restored.
“Work has returned, calm has returned, and everyone is moving about their business as usual. I make a call on all the IO ministers, the IO commissioners, and the IO politicians and everyone who belongs to the SPLM-IO party to return and resume their work, their offices are empty and waiting for them.” Badagbu urged
The situation continues to unfold as the Unity Government grapples with internal divisions and accusations of targeting political opponents under the guise of security measures.