Over 1,000 university students studying in North Sudan will not vote

Over 1,000 first years and continuing South Sudanese students studying in  North Sudan will not vote due to them being away from home, where they registered to vote. Brought earlier this year under the sponsorship of the government of Southern Sudan (GOSS) to study in the various Southern universities still operating in Khartoum, the students said they could not afford transport back to the South to cast their votes as a result they were disenfranchised.

Mr. Stephen one of the students at Al Gazel University said, “here in the University of Juba, we the first year students are above 370, most of us are eligible registered voters but we are stranded, we cannot go for the voting, nobody from the National Election Commission neither from the Government of Southern Sudan has come here to tell us about the election and what we should do, they only came here for campaigns and they went”

Some of the students from the states bordering Northern Sudan like Upper Nile, Unity, State and Warrap however have left but majority of the Equatorians, Jonglei and other states in the far South are remaining disenfranchised in their various hostels.  Some students in Barh El Gazel University College of Veterinary Science pictured above requested the extension of the election date for all executive positions requesting the National Election Commission to transport them back so they could vote.

“Let them extend the election date because of the irregularities, I heard people are missing their names from the voters’ list, no observers and registration of voters is done at the polling center, we need it pushed back so we the students can also vote, If we cannot go home let them bring our ballots here” one of the students demanded.

Of the Southern universities, Juba, Upper Nile, Barh El Gazel all operate in part in the North as lecturers according to a source within the staff were unwilling to transfer to the South citing poor living conditions.  So even after the CPA that brought many students home, GOSS is still forced to send its students to the university campuses based in Khartoum. Since 2005 after the signing of  the peace deal (CPA) hundreds of students who had studied in their refugee camps in Kenya, Uganda, and Ethiopia were given scholarships by the government of Southern Sudan to study in the various state Universities within North and South Sudan. Some have completed their studies while others are still in Khartoum. It is difficult to understand if the National Election Commission has just forgotten about these students, who have been disenfranchised. But you might ask, why were they able to register, if at the elections they are not able to vote?   

I request that the National Election Commission answer my question through Sudan Votes.  Thank you.