The young parliamentarians at the Reconstituted Transitional National Legislative Assembly (R-TNLA) and East African Youth Legislative Assembly (EAYLA) have appealed to the country’s youth to be peace ambassadors.
Paulino Lukudu, a Member of Parliament at the Council of State, said young people make up the majority of the population of South Sudan who have been affected by armed conflict.
He said the country would have been more peaceful if the youth had moved away from engaging in violence.
“For the past years, we couldn’t come together as the youth that has the same agenda that chooses unity over disunity. We have been part of the conflicts in the country since we were in Sudan,” the young MP said.
Lukudu was addressing a group of youth from different organisations at the opening of a workshop on “Action on UNSCR 2250: Promoting Youth, Peace and Security Agenda in South Sudan” in Juba yesterday.
“We must stand together. The youth are all the centre of our lives, regardless of our tribes, political affiliations, and regardless of the institutions that we come from, we will achieve what we want our country to be in the future,” he added.
According to him, it was through unity that young people would come up with a common agenda for how they wanted to solve the problems facing the country.
Call to action
The lawmaker called on the youth to be ambassadors of peace rather than promote violence in the country.
“Let us be partners in peace. We should not be constantly collaborating in violence to destroy our future.
“We have been partners in all the civil wars. Why can’t we partner in peace, development, leadership, and ideas that save the common well-being of the public,” Lukudu asked.
However, he said this would be possible if the youth had clear definitions of what the country’s future could be, saying it is the only thing that can pave the way for development in the country.
“So, it is now time to say enough to violence, destruction, and disunity, and let us have a common agenda for our people,” Lukudu stated.
Joyce Lamanya Solomon, Speaker of the East African Youth Parliament, said the country will only be secure from violence if peace initiatives are embraced.
She said it was always difficult for the youth to achieve their developmental agenda because of polarization.
“I have witnessed that youth from other East African countries have one voice when it comes to achieving young people’s agendas, but in South Sudan, we are not united. We usually have different agendas; we don’t support each other and we always fight each other. “
The East African Legislative Assembly speaker said the youth, who were supposed to contribute positively to the country’s development, are being viewed as troublemakers.
“It is not too late for us to take from where we are and move forward,” Joyce said. “The only thing that is required is that they put unity ahead of their interests and not be misled by politicians who have no clear agenda for the country.”
The two-day workshop was organised by youth organizations in collaboration with UNPA and UNMISS.