Cattle keepers pass through Pageri in Eastern Equatoria State | Credit | Tobias Abuchan‎/Facebook

A Lainya-based religious leader says the area is yet again experiencing an influx of cattle herders.

Bishop Elioba Laku Obed of the Episcopal Church of South Sudan said the herders from Jonglei and others from Terekeka started arriving on Monday last week.

But they have been stopped in some of the remote villages—miles away from penetrating further.

This, he says was after an area paramount chief spoke with them not to encroach further.

This comes after last week’s Monday deadline for the Mundari herdsmen to vacate the area.

But Bishop Obed stated that the cattle keepers have defied the ultimatum and continued to graze in the area, contrary to an announcement by a committee to facilitate the process that the Mundari herders had left the area.

“There are new arrivals of Dinka Bor and other Mundari cattle keepers. They were found in a place 50 miles from Lainya,” he told Eye Radio. “Our paramount chief stopped them from proceeding…but instead of returning, they are now in Lokurubang.”

“I don’t think they will return because we have conducted many meetings with them but they are still there, and the government is not so serious.”

Bishop Elioba Laku alleges that villages of Logwili, Limbe, and Lokurubang have been deserted by the locals due to cattle-related insecurity.

He calls on the national government to intervene.

The cattlemen moved to Lainya County of Central Equatoria state last November after deadly clashes among themselves around Juba.