30/07/2026
; Insecurity in Warrap Tournament is Insecurity in BCT Too.
~By: Concerned Citizen~ 30th July
Sports has always been one of the few remaining tools we have to unite our people in Warrap State and across Bahr El Ghazal. When our counties meet on the field in Juba, we are not just playing football. We are building peace, trust, and brotherhood.
That is why the decision by *Tonj South County* to withdraw from the ongoing *Warrap State Peace Tournament in Juba* citing insecurity in greater Tonj is deeply concerning.
Let us be clear: the insecurity being cited is happening in villages in greater Tonj, not in Juba. The Warrap State Peace Tournament is being hosted in Juba, where all teams are under the same security arrangement.
The bigger problem is what this decision sets as a precedent.
All the counties playing in the Warrap State Peace Tournament are the same counties that participate in the *Bahr El Ghazal Counties Tournament - BCT*.
If Tonj South fears other Warrap teams in Juba because of insecurity back home, then by the same logic, the other five Warrap counties have every reason to fear Tonj South when they meet in BCT.
In short: *instability in the Warrap State Peace Tournament is instability in BCT*.
This raises a very important question:
If Tonj South is suspending participation in the Warrap Peace Tournament due to insecurity, *why is Tonj South still participating in BCT?*
*Why is the Tonj South Communities Tournament still going on?*
And more importantly: *Why is the leadership of BCT silent about this?*
Silence from leadership creates fear, suspicion, and double standards. It tells other counties that the rules are not the same for everyone.
For the sake of peace, fairness, and consistency, *Tonj South County should either suspend participation in ALL sporting activities* — including BCT and its own local tournament — *or rejoin the Warrap State Peace Tournament*.
We cannot use sports to bring peace with one hand, and use insecurity to divide us with the other.
Sports must remain neutral ground. If we allow politics and fear to enter the field, then we will lose one of the last spaces where Warrap and Bahr El Ghazal can come together as one people.
Let peace play. Let all counties play.