Response to an Email Which was Directed to Anyuak Media

  A Gambella Official?

I hope by now many Anyuak Media visitors have come across by a rather shocking article which was posted on September 25, 2009 by some body called Nuer Maach entitled " An E-mail to Anyuak Media - Gambella Official ". I called it a shocking article because it was delivered by some one who portrayed himself as a Gambella Official. An Official is supposed to be a unifier, but not a devisive element while occupying a political office under normal circumstances.

To raise few issues on the said article, let me start at the onset by saying that education is one of the most important instruments for any humankind development on our beloved planet called Earth. It is because of this fact that gorervments around the world are investing huge amount of money on education to day and if I am not mistaken, this is what the regional govermnent of Gambella has been doing all these years. It is quite true that all indigenous ethnic groups of Gamella were denied of educational opportunities during the previous subsequence regimes in Ethiopia. It is true also that after the government of EPRDF came to power, we have seen unprecedented expansion of education in Gambella region since then. This needs to be praised by the sons and daughters of the region. No joke in this matter at all. In my candid opinion all the indigenous ethnic groups have to be happy for this kind of achievement, We should be happy if our human development indexes are growing for the betterment of the development of our region. For our Nuer brothers and sisters, we are all happy that their human resourse development is getting better not only at the regional level, but also at the national level in large. But, one thing should be clear here.

The most important thing here is that what are we doing with the education we have. How do we use it to change the surrounding environment to our advantage? Mr. Maach was boasting that the bureaux of the region are full with Nuer experts. It would be nothing wrong of occupying the whole offices in the region if the Nuer experts are doing the rigth thing for all ethnic groups in the region. If I may ask Mr. Maach, What is the use of being a well educated person or being an expert if you can't bring a tangible change in the way of lives of your people? I think this is the key point here.

To tell the truth, it is an open market secret that the Nuer boys and girls are still going naked in African countinent in the 21st century. Again, it is true that the Nuer man is still sleeping in the ashes of cow's dung in the the places which are not far from Gambella towm. These fathers of yours are the ones who wake up every morning praying to their deities to give them power to eliminate the Anuaks from their God given lands. Mr. Maach, is it not the so called Nuer experts you are boasting of them that are sitting under the Mango and Nem trees in Gamebella town counting the days to collect their salaries with out reporting to their working posts in Akobo and Lare woredas and yet you don't feel ashamed?  What is really the meaning to be an expert if you can't improve the way you are dealing with the issues of animal husbandry for centuries. What would you feel, if some body is telling you now that the Nuers were the ones selling milk to many house holds in Gambella town 10 years ago, but the Nuers themselves are now buying the same product from the settlers who came from highlands? Don't you think that there is a dynamism in this case which shows us that you may not boast the way you were doing simply by counting the number of cattles? Wake up man things are changing. To be a owner of many cows is possible any where and any time. Not only in the Nuer land.

I think, the above mentioned areas are where a learned person should exert much effort to improve up on. This can be applied not only to Nuer experts, but also to all experts of the other indigenous ethnic groups of the region. If you can't improve the living condtion in your area or zone, what will you do even if you are an expert in a certain bureau at the regional level, leave alone to be a president of the whole region. I don't really understand why always you the Nuers are only pointing at the post of presidency? Don't we know Nuer's Administration during the Dergue regime when two Nuer gentlemen occupied both Offices of the Chief Administrator and that of the Party? If you were not too young to understand what happened, what have these guys done to develop the region?  No thing! The only things you the Nuers busy with were killing the Anuaks and putting their villages on fire, encroaching on the Anuaks land and ambushing the SPLM/A convoys. You have done all these for your lust of power in Gambella as well as in South Sudan and you don't fear God by asking for the post of presidency in Gambella today while you are occupying all the important offices.

Wait a minute Mr. Maach. I was really surprised by your assertion that the Anuaks are blocking all chances for Nuers to get school and job opportunities. I think you are not honest for yourself. If you can say in your article that you are occupying all bureaux and 95% of the students in schools of the region are Nuers, how can the Anuaks block you? Shame on you man. If you may recalled, during the Dergue regime Anuaks were competting with their Ethiopian compatriots to be enrolled in the Higher Learning Institutions while the Nuers were under the UNHCR programmes where they can be enrolled in these Institutions with lower results since they were treated as non-nationals of Ethiopia. Is it not true that these mentioned Sudanese are the ones who are occupying the key positions in Gambella region to day? Can Mr. Maach say any thing about this fact? If it is true then, it would be the Anuaks who should be claimed as victims in this case not the other round. Mind you, it was not the Anuaks and it will not be the Anuaks to fabricate that Nuers are Sudanese. You know what is the truth from the bottom of your heart. 

One more thing. What have you raised about the EPRDF enemy issue Mr. Maach? If you are really an official from Gambella , I think you have to look around again and educate yourself about the EPRDF policies and strategies. I feel that you are in danger if you have a thought that the Nuers as ethnic group in Gambella is the only friend of EPRDF. As any lay man can understand easily, EPRDF is a political organization with certain programmes. Those who believe in these programmes have the right to be part of this political entity. If there is a group of people who can come together and make their own political party to promote their agenda which is different to that of EPRDF, this group should be considered as opponent party, not an enemy. To my understanding, to which I hope the EPRDF stands for too, there should be no an enemy or a friend of EPRDF simply on ethnic basis. If that was the case, there wouldn't have been many opposition parties in those regions under the administration of EPRDF like Tigray, Oromiya, Amhara and Southern Ethiopia. What Mr. Maach has to know is that the only enemy of EPRDF should be poverty and those people with diabolic ideas like you have. As for the Anuaks, every body knows that they are the eye openers for the indigenous ethnic groups of Gambella as history can clearly tell and I hope Mr. Maach can't question the sacrifices and contributions paid by the Anuaks for the mother land, Ethiopia.

May God bless Gambella.

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