HOUSES OF WORSHIP Frankly speaking, SPLA chief Paul Malong Awan should bulldoze more churches. First things first. There is no valid reason why churches and mosques are allotted chunks of land while people subsist in squalid conditions or homeless, particularly in the capital. Church is good. Its leaders pray to the God of Israelis to end South Sudan’s crisis. They tell Him to soften the principal’s hearts – President Kiir and Dr Riek – in order to restore peace. They humbly ask Him to make rain of manna rain on the displaced starving women and children. They beg him to stop soldiers from raping 10-year-olds and pregnant women in Upper Nile region. Churches also ask Israelis super being to make leaders miraculously churn corruption, nepotism, tribalism and selfishness. They fulfil spiritual needs of the citizens. Generally, the contributions the church makes towards nation-building are acknowledged and highly appreciated. But with land being a very vital element in socioeconomic development, the government should reconsider its land allotment policies especially towards religious groups. South Sudan badly needs development. And to build the country, such big lands should be given to investors to develop them, not sound-polluting houses of worship. Investors, whether local or foreign, need large tracks of land to build hospitals, shopping malls and factories on. Youth seem to scramble for governmental jobs because the stunted private sector offers few job opportunities. If lands are given to private developers, it helps unburden the government as far as employment is concerned. It falls under job creation for young people. When jobless and hopeless, young people tend to do bad things or lean towards criminal activities. The extremely despondent ones give up their lives to heavy drinking that gnaws their futures. But when they get jobs, their lives change. They get preoccupied with personal developments. Thanks to wise usage of land. With that in mind, all the plots that have been offered to churches should be retaken by the government and availed to investors. Churches and mosques should be given plots on the outskirt of the capital. This is to give room to the most needed services. This couples with the fact that they are so noisy. They disturb peace of those living adjacent to them, particularly schoolchildren who spend much of their time studying at home on weekends. Since these houses of worship have been commercialized - yes they make money, big money, through offerings from church members and politicians - the government should begin to tax them. The Medan Simba land dispute between the army and some self-proclaimed prophet has been dragging on for years now. Others say its registered under the army. And some say it’s the international church’s property. Anyway, that should be left to the court to establish the true land owner. At times, security people disperse Christians, claiming that the ‘Praise the Lord and Hallelujah’ chants get louder, unbearable sometimes. That’s understandable because the church is close to the military hospital where the wounded soldiers receive treatments. So, in this particular case, it’s believed that Paul Malong is right. The land registrar should give the church an alternative plot somewhere away from residence, suggestively between Shirkat and Nesitu or along Juba-Bor road. If he wishes, the prophet can go and report Malong to the God of Israel. Period. Tearz © 2014
Posted on: Mon, 13 Oct 2014 04:56:21 +0000
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