A cross-section of the critics of Northern Bahr el Ghazal State Governor Simon Uber Mawut have appealed to President Salva Kiir to dismiss him, citing the governor’s arbitrary detention of people with dissenting voices at military facilities.
The calls gained traction after some of the citizens who had been arrested and detained for different periods accused the governor of ruling the state with an iron fist.
Between 26 February and April 2025, Dut Kuot Akook, a civil servant working at the state finance ministry, and Angelo Akuoc, a former member of the State Anticorruption Commission, were held for several days at the Mathiang Military Barracks before being released without charges.
In an exclusive interview with Radio Tamzuj, Akuoc strongly urged the president to remove the governor from office, emphasizing that the latter has lost direction.
“The call is, and the top leadership should hear it, we want the governor to be removed because that was not the reason he was appointed by the president, he was not appointed to arrest people,” he stated. “We have the right to opinions, and when we see that things are not going well, we have to talk. If he does not want people to talk or have an opinion, it means that he is entertaining corruption. He is an unjust leader.”
According to Akuoc, his detention at the military barracks was part of coordinated efforts between Governor Uber and the SSPDF Division Commander. He stressed that Uber was using security forces to suppress opposition.
“We are nine people who he arrested differently and even now, he has a case with comrade Dut Kuot Akook, who was the first person to be arrested and taken to National Security,” he charged. “The governor always arrests people randomly, and there is no single development happening in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State.”
For his part, a local youth who only identified himself as Bol for fear of reprisal, also claimed that the state government silences voices involved in constructive criticism.
“Last time, he (the governor) arrested Dut Kuot and a teacher who complained about salary cuts. So, as citizens and local youths, we see this is not how the state should be run,” he said. The governor is scaring citizens and silencing the voice of critics. So, I am appealing to the top leadership to remove the governor or advise him to stop arresting youth randomly. This is my appeal.”
Dut Kuot Akook, a critic who was arrested and detained for 26 days on allegations of defaming Governor Uber, said his criticism was constructive, based on pressing issues in the state, and that his writing never touched on the person or privacy of the governor.
“At the end, as I make my analysis, the reason why I was arrested is to silence me, but the channel that they have chosen is to do it forcefully. They have arrested me, and worse of all, in the end, it appears to be a defamation case,” Kuot said. “A defamation case should start at the police station; open a case against me, make investigations, and I have to be bailed out, and then we continue with the court proceedings. However, that one did not happen because I was arrested and directly taken to the state’s national security facilities.”
“I spent twenty-six days without any investigation and was transferred to the police station when a defamation case was opened against me in the name of the governor,” he added.
In response, Garang Makuei, the deputy press secretary in Governor Uber’s office, fiercely defended his boss and urged the critics to use a constructive approach when expressing their views.
“They should find the right way to address their concerns; they should not just pour accusations without evidence,” he stated. “If they believe the governor has failed in certain areas, they should say that the governor has failed here and there. That is constructive criticism.”
Makuei dismissed allegations of arbitrary arrests, but acknowledged the arrest of one person who he said had been sued by Uber for defamation.
Meanwhile, Ter Manyang Gatwech, a civil society activist and the Executive Director of the Center for Peace and Advocacy, condemned the arbitrary arrest of critics in Northern Bahr el Ghazal State and called on the governor to respect human rights as resolved by the 8th Governors’ Forum.
“I am just wondering how the state governor, who was part of those resolutions, is trying to intimidate people who try to express their opinions and arrest them without due process,” he said. “The governor himself is a public figure; he is subject to criticism if he is not doing the right thing. Citizens need to express themselves on issues affecting them. As an activist, I really condemn this move.”
Manyang added: “Last year’s 8th Governors’ Forum resolutions require governors to respect human rights.”