APAA: CUI BONO? WHO GAINS FROM THE BLOODSHED?

By Nokrach, O. (2025)

In legal and political analysis, cui bono? — Latin for who benefits? — is a powerful question. To truly understand what is happening in Apaa, we must ask: who gains from the violence and displacement?

The answer is disturbing but clear: The government or the people who have captured the government are the ones who gain from the killings in Apaa.

The Strategy Behind the Violence in Apaa

The violence in Apaa is not accidental. It is a calculated campaign of dispossession. The government, or powerful actors within it, are leveraging ethnic divisions to systematically remove the Acoli from their ancestral lands. The Madi are being used as instruments of violence against the Acoli — but they too are pawns in a bigger game.

After the Madi have fulfilled their tragic role, they too will be removed, paving the way for so-called “forest reserve owners” – likely politically connected individuals or corporate interests – to take full control of the land. This is classic divide-and-conquer politics, masked as conservation or development.

Apaa Is Just the Beginning — Acoli Must See the Bigger Picture

The crisis in Apaa is not isolated. Zoom out and you’ll the whole picture: The entire territory of Acoli is being cut up into pieces to make sure Acoli will not be able to function as one collective land and people.

From Lakang to Ngomoromo, Aswa to Palabek, strategic settlements of Banyankole (Balaalo) have been planted within Acoli territory. These settlements are not random. They are designed to influence voting patterns, infiltrate political representation, and eventually change land laws — all to legitimize the land grabs.

So, creating a new district in Apaa is not a solution – it’s a trap. Will we create separate districts in every other area being infiltrated too? Each new “Balaalo district” fragments us further. Who gains from this? Certainly not the Acoli.

The Peaceful Resistance Starts at the Ballot Box

There is still time, but not much. Acoli must unite in 2025/2026 and choose the peaceful path of resistance: vote out all NRM-aligned MPs, LC5 leaders, and collaborators. Every yellow shirt in office is a potential collaborator in this scheme. The peaceful solution lies in voting them out before it’s too late.

If we fail to act now, our children will fight the same battle — but from a weaker position. The next generation will resist with bows and arrows against AK-47s, just like our people in Apaa are being forced to do today. We cannot afford this future.

There Is No Refuge Left

In past crises, we could run to Acoli lands in South Sudan. But even there, our people are under attack, this time by the Dinka, backed by the same forces destabilizing Apaa. The walls are closing in. We have nowhere left to run.

The Choice Is Yours. The Time Is Now.

KICK NRM OUT OF ACOLI TO SAVE YOUR LAND, YOUR PEOPLE, AND YOUR CHILDREN.

Security blame politicians for renewed violence in Apaa land conflict