In a letter dated 17th June 2025, addressed to Joseph Ezibon Waiwai, the Director General of Petroleum Authority, the association claimed that Mary Ayen, the Deputy Speaker of the Council of States and Stepheno Wiew, the Chief Administrator of Ruweng Administrative Area, played a role in the content of the letter addressed to the state government ordering the relocation.
This publication earlier reported that the Unity State Minister of Agriculture rejected a directive from the Office of the President through Greater Pioneer Operating Company (GPOC), notifying residents from the two bomas of resettlement to an unnamed location at a distance of 45km from the oilfields.
The national authorities cited safety concerns from oil waste-induced environmental pollution as reasons for the relocation. However, the youth association alleged that the decision taken without consultation with community leaders aims to drive residents from their ancestral lands.
“This incitement and mobilisation were not just conceived overnight by these authors, rather they are copied and pasted from the dirty diaries of incitements orchestrated by Mary Ayen Majiok, the Deputy Speaker of the Council of States and Stepheno Wiew, the Chief Administrator of Ruweng Administrative Area
The association claimed that the directive was shaped by a public statement from Simon Tor De Deng, the Director General at the Ministry of Petroleum, endorsed by Chol Ajongo Mawut, the Minister of Presidential Affairs.
“These statements are not only baseless and unjustifiable, but they also lack any legal, constitutional, or moral foundation. The lands of Rotriak Boma and Panyangal are not just geographic territories, but they are the ancestral homes of the Leek people,” read the statement.
“Our Identity, our history and our very existence are rooted in this land. Any suggestion or plan to uproot our people without due process, transparent consultation, or meaningful engagement is not only unacceptable, but it also constitutes a form of structural violence and ethnic marginalisation,” it added.
The youth association underscored the significance of development but maintained that developmental initiatives should not be imposed on communities.
“It is important to note that the Leek community has always supported peaceful coexistence, national development and investment that benefits the people. However, development should not and cannot be imposed through forceful displacement, deceitful narratives or political manipulation that undermines the lives and dignity of innocent civilians,” it said.
However, authorities maintained that the relocation only aims at safeguarding the communities from the harmful effects of environmental pollution stemming from oil waste mismanagement.
Over the years, Unity State and other oil-producing regions in South Sudan have seen a spike in the number of child deformities and livestock deaths linked to oil environmental pollution. This has drawn significant attention from rights groups and civil society, who have urged the government to act.
Consultant companies were hired to conduct an environmental assessment. However, those findings were withheld in protest against a lack of payment.
