Truck drivers condemn killings of colleagues in South Sudan amidst calls for government intervention

MACHAKOS, Kenya, Sep 7 – The Kenya long-distance truck drivers Union and South Sudan Freight Forwarders Association held a crisis meeting Tuesday following the incessant harassment and killings of drivers along the Juba route.

The Kenya union chairperson Nicholas Mbugua and the South Sudan chairperson Emmanuel Kachoul condemned the killings saying the onus now lies with the Juba government to provide security to truck drivers and restore normalcy.

Close to 20 drivers are said to have lost their lives in recent years at the hands of criminals and alleged rebel fighters along the highways in South Sudan.

“It is the job of South Sudan to protect its people and make sure no single person is killed in the country, we have lost close to 20 drivers in the South Sudan jurisdiction,” said Nicholas Mbugua, Chairman, Kenya Long Distance Truck Drivers Union.

“We strongly condemn these attacks and killing of innocent drivers, this is evil and barbaric, in our culture we do not kill innocent people who are connecting your country with the essential supply of commodities because as a landlocked country we depend on the port of Mombasa,” said Emmanuel Kachoul, Chairman, SSFFA.

Hundreds of trucks as a result of the killings have been grounded in Malaba, Busia, Kumi, Bale, Alegu towns until stakeholders’ demands are met.

“The people doing this along the Juba road…it his clear the motive is very clear, to disrupt supply chain between Mombasa and South Sudan so that the business community and people of South Sudan seek to use another port,” said Kachoul who further insisted, “The government of South Sudan has assured us of the security of our drivers, we have spoken to ministers in Sudan and the ambassador. We will have a meeting with the Kenyan minister of trade and I want to remind people inciting people that what they are doing is wrong,” he said.

South Sudan representatives however say that security has been beefed up on the highway with security agencies pursuing rebels that have impeded trade.

“We will go to South Sudan next week and see what the government is doing whether what they tell us is true or not. We will advise our drivers afterward,” said Mbugua.