In a video circulating on social media since April 12, 2025, Balaam Barugahara, Uganda’s State Minister for Gender, Labour, and Social Development in charge of Youth and Children Affairs, claimed without evidence that military ranks in South Sudan are sold rather than earned.
“Uganda is not Konyokonyo or Shirkat in South Sudan, where you buy medals and become a general,” said Barugahara, who reportedly owns Juba-based Radio One and is a close ally of Muhoozi Kainerugaba, commander of the Uganda People’s Defence Force (UPDF).
In response, South Sudan’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs issued a letter on April 14, 2025, expressing “grave concern and protest” over Barugahara’s statement, which it deemed offensive and damaging to the bilateral relationship between the two nations.
The letter demanded a formal apology, stating, “The government and people of South Sudan are outraged by this derogatory remark, which is inconsistent with the sisterly ties between our countries.”
Barugahara’s comments come amid heightened political tensions in South Sudan, where UPDF forces are deployed under a 2014 security cooperation agreement between Juba and Kampala.
The remarks also echo previous derogatory statements by Ugandan officials. In January 2021, President Yoweri Museveni referred to South Sudanese as “blue people” during a speech marking the 35th anniversary of the National Resistance Movement’s rise to power.
Museveni refused to apologise, defiantly stating, “I don’t regret it. Who has the audacity to question my comment?” Museveni, the only president Uganda has known since 1986, did not clarify the context of his statement.
