Dispute over tax collection sparks confrontation among General Ochan Puot’s forces in Maiwut  

MAIWUT – An armed confrontation has emerged this morning among forces loyal to former SPLA-IO commander, General Ochan Puot, in South Sudan’s Maiwut county after disagreements over who should collect taxes there, senior government officials in Maiwut said.

One county official told Sudans Post on phone that the confrontation began after General Ochan Puot decided to remove a group of tax collectors to install close aides in the county’s revenue collection system.

“There is an armed confrontation in Maiwut as we speak because General James Ochan Puot has tried to remove some people working in the county revenue collection body so that he can replace them with his political allies,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

The official said that after the incumbent tax collectors resisted the changes, General Ochan Puot sent in forces to remove them by force and arrest them leading the other group to arm themselves sparking armed confrontation.

“General Ochan then sent forces to remove them using force and these people have resisted and armed themselves,” he said.

“As I speak to you, there are tensions here in Maiwut and elders are trying to calm down the situation. They have asked Ochan to move his forces out of town center so that clashes in between civilians are avoided,” he added.

He further said Ochan’s “forces are saying they will not leave until the tax collectors are removed.”

Agitators condemned

Dickson Gatluak Joak, a senior opposition official of South Sudan United Front, who is a native of Maiwut, condemned those he said are behind the incident and said people there cannot withstand further divisions.

“Chiewaw as a community comes out from the war recently when they split from the main opposition party, SPLA-IO. So they need to rest and enjoy the relative peace in the area with their neighbors,” Gatluak who is in Nairobi, Kenya, told Sudans Post.

“I personally condemns, in the strongest terms possible, who ever want to take back our people to war again over the local community resources,” he added.