Bishop Elias Taban declared on Wednesday that Yei is a welcoming place for people of all ethnicities, stressing that his own church has enrolled children from many different tribes into the church schools and will not expel them.

“I tell you that I have more students in those schools from other regions even not from Equatoria. Where do we want to send them?” stressed the Bishop of the Evangelical Presbyterian Church.

He was speaking in Yei on the same day that SPLM-Juba faction leader Salva Kiir speaking in Juba raised fears that non-Equatorians will be expelled from Equatoria if his political rivals’ calls for federalism are met.

Kiir in his speech blamed people of Central Equatoria for expelling people from other regions during the Kokora movement in the early 1980s.

“They expelled [even] Zande, they expelled the people of Eastern Equatoria – the people of Central Equatoria they remained alone. Will this thing not happen again? It will happen,” said the SPLM-Juba faction leader.

For his part, the Presbyterian bishop stated, “Let us stop rumor-mongering. Let us stop rumor-mongering in Yei and the whole of Southern Sudan. We have no more ground for fighting. That is enough.”

“Now our fight is done by our members of parliament, whether it is in the state assembly, or in the national assembly. And if they fail, they come back to us to give an accountability how did they failed,” said the bishop, as quoted by local radio Spirit FM.

He continued, “My prayer is that Yei will remain a place of peace, because all the communities of Southern Sudan are here in Yei.”

Yei welcomes pupils of all tribes

“When you look into those school children outside there, they have come all over Southern Sudan. My church has a number of schools. And I tell you that I have more students in those schools from other regions even not from Equatoria.”

“Where do we want to send them? Some people who have money they have taken their children to Uganda, they have taken their children to Kenya, but those who cannot afford, they brought their children here to Yei. Why can’t we maintain peace so that these children can study?”

Bishop Elias was speaking to a crowd at an event commemorating the third anniversary of South Sudan’s independence. His counterpart in the Episcopal Church, Yei Diocese Bishop Hillary Luate, also addressed the crowd.

Related coverage:

Kiir raises fears of ‘Kokora’ under federal system (10 Juy)

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