A civil society activist is urging the presidency to incorporate the evaluation resolutions from previous governors’ forums into the upcoming meeting scheduled for November.

Edmond Yakani, Executive Director of the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), expressed his concerns in a press statement sent to Eye Radio.

He pointed out that holding the 8th governors’ forum without reviewing the performance of governors and chief administrators would amount to what he terms “political tourism” for state leaders.

Yakani pointed out that most state governors and chief administrators have failed to implement the resolutions and recommendations made during last year’s forum.

“We have demanded the office of the President to establish an evaluation and monitoring mechanism for assessing the performance of state governors and chief administrators in implementing the agreed-upon resolutions,” he said.

“Unfortunately, we have not seen this call transparently translated into reality. We are aware that some leaders may dispute this. Our call to you is to provide clear evidence of a proper evaluation of state governors’ and chief administrators’ performance concerning the resolutions and recommendations from the 7th governors’ forum.”

He added that the lack of visible results is a waste of taxpayer money and donor support.

“If there are no tangible outcomes, we are wasting resources that could be used for the betterment of our communities,” Yakani stated.

The Office of the President, in partnership with the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), organized the 7th governors’ forum last November.

The discussions aimed to foster national cohesion and set the country on a path to a peaceful transition toward democratic governance.

At the opening of the six-day forum, President Salva Kiir tasked the governors with finding mechanisms to end conflicts between state executives and legislatures.

He warned against the dismissal and suspension of subordinates due to political and personal differences, asserting that governors do not have the authority to act in such a manner.

President Kiir encouraged the parties to the peace agreement to cooperate in transitioning the country toward a politically and economically stable democracy.

He also called on peace parties to refrain from engaging in activities that could undermine South Sudan and harm its citizens.

Furthermore, he reminded the governors’ forum that anyone aspiring to be president has the right to organize their party and contest peacefully in the upcoming 2024 elections without resorting to violence.