EES Supports Suspension Of Oil Production

This article was last updated on April 16, 2022

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Eastern Equatoria State has rallied behind the National Government of South Sudan through peaceful demonstrations in support of decision taken by National Council of Ministers to shut down South Sudan’s oil production. 
  
Some of the placards and banners the demonstrators carried read, “EES Ministry of Education supports the decision of the president to stop oil production”, “Our Ministry condemns unreasonable looting of South Sudan’s oil by Khartoum regime”, “We support closure of the oil production in the country by our National Government.”  
  
A letter dated 23/01/2012 was read before the demonstrators at the State Secretariat General by the chairperson of the demonstration’s organizing committee, Mr. Koma John Sylvester, addressed to President Salva Kiir Mayardit. It read that;

“We the entire citizens of EES would like today 23/01/2012 to register our congratulations through you, our Governor (Hon. Louis Lobong Lojore), to President of the Republic of South Sudan and the entire National Cabinet for the right and brave decision taken on 20/1/202. We as a new nation will not tolerate our valuable resources stolen from us or from being marginalized by any country. We are aware of challenges our new country is facing and we are ready to face them by embarking on several alternatives such as agriculture, animal resources’ production and improvement of our internal tax collection. It is time to reassure you that we will continue to support and defend our nation and carry out our duty and obligation as stipulated in the national transitional constitution.” 
  
The move follows continuous looting of South Sudan’s oil by the Khartoum Government, officials have said.    
     
The Governor told the citizens that following the split of the South Sudan from Sudan in July last year, Khartoum Government has adamantly continued to plunder the newest country’s oil resources without consulting South Sudanese authorities. 
  
Hon. Lobong narrated that the malpractice by the Sudanese Government to loot the South Sudan’s oil had secretly been continuing, they decided to loot the oil even at broad daylight.

“This is real bullying,” he said and added that Khartoum has taken large quantities of oil, as a result the National Government decided shut down the oil production pending other working alternatives for national revenue. 
  
Not long ago, a section of the media has also reported Khartoum authorities of blocking two ships loaded with over 650,000 barrels of South Sudanese oil from leaving the export terminal because they did not pay the port fees, a move South Sudanese people describe as a provocative act. 
  
Among the South Sudanese oil companies affected are the Nile Petroleum Corporation, wholly owned by the government of South Sudan; PETRODAR -an operations company mainly owned by China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC); PETRONAS of Malaysia; SUDAPET of Sudan; and SINOPEC of China. 
 
Amidst a heated debate with the Sudanese government in Khartoum over pipeline and transit fees, South Sudanese officials have revealed that the Country’s oil accounts cater for about 98% of South Sudan’s revenue.

Recently, media outlets across South Sudan reported that, Sudan has admitted to taking some South Sudanese oil intended for export as compensation until an agreement was reached, but the South Sudanese Government has irritably termed the practice as a ‘thievery’. 
  
In order to ensure complete shutdown of oil production, the South Sudan’s National Minister for Information Dr. Barnaba Marial Benjamin disclosed to the press in Juba that the government had directed the Minister of Petroleum and Mining to continue with shut down procedures and arrangements.          
  
Speaking to Gurtong shortly after the rally, the Kapoeta North County Commissioner Mr. Lokai Iko Loteyo welcomed the decision taken joyously while describing the practice as a big economic crime ever committed in the world.

After the peaceful demonstration, Gurtong also spoke to one of the MPs in Eastern Equatoria State Legislative Assembly (EESLA), Ms Florence Nighty Otto who equally supported the suspension of oil production operation including any oil transactions. 
  
The State Governor also informed the demonstrators that South Sudan has potentials including the oil wealth but requires the infrastructure to refine and export the resource.