Warrap state is totally marginalized by the media outlets which are operating in Sudan and South Sudan in particular. Media outlets don’t report anything about Warrap state in public media. You can not find any fresh information about this state on newspapers as well as on South Sudan Television (SSTV). There is no whereabouts to come to know of what is happening in the state. Somebody does not actually know what has gone wrong with the government of Warrap state and the state Ministry of Information. The citizens of the state living in and outside Warrap want to have information about their own home state not of merely general news of South Sudan. Sometimes it is good and very important for a person to hear oneself as part of the ongoing story. Where can these people learn of what is happening in the state which they dearly love?
Well, if media is excluded in Warrap state development because of the state government refusal to it then the decision needs to be reversed; but if it is not prohibited by the state Government. Then the question is: why Warrap is out of South Sudan media operations? Media does not only report news about failures of the government, it does report also about successes the government might have gone through and its future plans. I am sure there are a lot to report in my state. We have good and rich cultures that can attract the interests of other states in South Sudan as well as the whole world if they are actually extracted and reported out to the media. It is not necessary to report only about cattle raiding during winters. The daily activities and occasions that occur in the state are what we might need to see on media outlets or read on newspapers. Unless there is a continuous communication of the government that will let the citizens know of their being important and the hard work their government is doing for them. Otherwise they may not know that the government is doing something good for the state’s population.
The media also can let us know how our leaders make their decisions for the success of their objectives and the future of this and the coming generations. We want to learn from Warrap state leaders. Their wise words need to be recorded for our future benefit, but unless journalism is active in the area. We want to take examples from them if they are good leaders at all. We want to know; what do they say and how do they lead? The answer to this question needs them to speak to newspapers, radio and TV stations about their ongoing activities in the state. Of course, not all of us, the citizens of the state that should go and meet them (Warrap leaders) in their offices to get information of what they are doing for us. We want to hear any development the referendum. We really want to hear them speaking to us in media like SSTV, we are always there waiting for them to speak to us but none comes. Their faces are not known to us though we confidently elected them to power during the April general elections.
The state should work to rescue Warrap from another marginalization which is trying to creep into the state again after the long civil war of liberation has been accomplished. If it is the Government of South Sudan (GoSS) which has a plan to reduce the activities of our state leaders not to appear on TV screens and on newspapers then that one completely is out of our interest.
Should it be because our governor is a woman? What is wrong with that? We elected her to be our leader. We have our trust in her that she can rule us especially during this important era. I know most of the world’s leaders are men and they dislike women’s leaderships. Should that be the problem our state’s leadership is suffering under? Is southern Sudan trying to marginalize our state because it is ruled by a woman? This thing should be looked into. There is no reason why we sit watching SSTV which brings none of the activities from our state. I am bored of the activities that do not bring in my state! I thought that SSTV would not be like Sudan TV which only focuses on Khartoum and other Islamic states in the north living aside the important southern Sudan. Why is it difficult for SSTV to report something about Kwajok the state’s Headquarters?
We open our ears to listen and tune to radio stations but we hear nothing about Warrap. We spend money buying newspapers to read them expecting we shall get one news headline to talk about Warrap state but none is reported. We switch on international and national televisions to watch news especially about Warrap but all that we view is about the rest of southern Sudan states minus Warrap, the home state that we so much love.
Dear readers, I specially, have switched on South Sudan Television (SSTV) for hours, weeks and months but it is rare even to see the face of my Governor, H.E Cde Nyandeng Malek. Does it mean that there are no state journalists in Warrap? If they are there what are they doing? Then what is the work of the state ministry of information? They should employ active people of interest to run this job. It is for the community and development at the same time. We need to know about the ongoing preparations for the referendum. Warrap has never reported anything about it.
It is very challenging to say that you are a leader and you don’t talk to your people. The world has gone far and media technology is growing faster on daily basis and that needs a state like Warrap to open its eyes boldly to see any corresponding alternatives.
Attending my duty
Me
