Sep 30, 2021 — The South Sudan Pentecostal Church is at a loggerhead with the governor of Central Equatoria State, Hon Emmanuel Adil Anthony, accusing him of confiscating nearly 4,000 sq meters of land in Hai-Malakia suburbs of Juba. .
The religious leaders accused the governor of Central Equatoria state of illegally acquiring its 3,973 square meters of land through what they describe as “illegal, heavy-landed, unconstitutional, misguided, ungodly, and disobedient to the law of God and that of the land” means.
The Church leaders took the matter to media on Tuesday last week after governor Adil issued a gubernatorial decree to confiscate a land that was used by the church as its property .
According to the pastors of the Pentecostal Church, they acquired the ownership of the land in 1993 from the then state government; however, the church has been fighting court cases over the same land since 2009 as the Central Equatoria State’s Ministry of Housing and Physical Infrastructure tried to convert it into a public land several times.
Briefing the media on Friday, September 24th, the General Overseer of the Sudan Pentecostal Church, Bishop Majok Dau dismissed governor Adil’s decree, terming it illegal, unconstitutional and misguided.
“The Sudan Pentecostal Church rejects in total the gubernatorial order for the appropriation of its lands by governor Adil. This is illegal, heavy-landed, unconstitutional, misguided, ungodly, and disobedient to the law of God and that of the land,” Major said.
“The church is a public entity and has all the rights and privileges to that of our land.” He continued.
According to Bishop Majok, the governor is listening to wrong individuals who are already in dispute with the church over the same piece of land.
“It is unfortunate for the governor chose to seek advice and counsel from the very people who are in dispute with church over the land,” Majok stated.
According to earlier reports, the Church won the same case against the state government in 2016 when judge Nicola Makuach ruled the verdict in favor of the church and won again in 2018 when the court of Appeal also ruled in favor of the Pentecostal Church.
According to Bishop Majok Dau, it is illegal and unconstitutional for governor Adil to try to overrule the ruling of the Court of Appeal through gubernatorial decrees.
“Using gubernatorial order to reverse the court ruling is considered by the church as an act of undermining and interference with people’s rights and freedoms,” he said.
According to the frustrated Bishop, the Church will not settle until it gets back its piece of land.
