Wun Weng in Dinka is an adage used to describe a situation where the real owner of a cow arrives at a place where the lion has thrown down his cow, about to kill it and people, the none-owners who have heard and has come to the vicinity appears hesitant to attack or to chase away the lion which is fiercely making deadly attempts to kill the cow it has already thrown down while it is struggling to resist the lion.
On arrival, the cow’s owner would not mind going against the lion straight. He would not ask anybody to join him going against the lion and nobody would find time to restrain him from throwing himself against the lion.
He will just go in straight whether with spears or empty-handed, he would rush against the lion, nonstop, for the cow belongs to him! In Dinka, the life of a Dinka person is tied up with the life of the cow and it will be worthwhile to die for the cow or rescue it from any danger.
In such a situation, the lion will have no choice other than to jump away, leaving the cow to its fearless owner. The courageous behaviour of the owner of the cow will indicate that the actual owner of the cow has finally arrived and is not there to make other considerations or calculations which made the rest to hesitate in chasing the lion away from the cow.
The lion will certainly recognize that the man now running against him with speed is none other than the real owner of the very cow “Wun Weng”, and that’s why it must jump away, running for it’s own life.
Taking this adage to the country’s situation where President Kiir’s legacy was galvanised and poised to destruction, Adut Kiir’s arrival was seen by Ateny Wek as the only way for Kiir’s legacy to be rescued from destruction. What was at stake was Kiir Mayardit’s legacy. Put another way round, was Adut Kiir’s family legacy. The adage must have been meant to encourage Adut Kiir to salvage the legacy of her father.
President Kiir Mayardit’s mother comes from PAYII clan where I come, and his legacy includes all his paternal and maternal kinship network in their entirety! As such, Adut’s arrival is in my view to be likened with Ateny Wek’s adage of Wun Weng aci Ben. We should see the context in which the adage was used by Ateny Wek.
Ateny Wek must have meant President Kiir’s legacy. Ateny Wek with those of us behind him was encouraging young Adut to use her position to clean off the dirt and diseases which were allowed to affect the legacy and make a breakthrough to untie the stalemate in which the Country is in today.
Wun Weng is Adut Kiir Mayardit, along with the entire kinship. Weng in Ateny Wek’s adage is the ‘Legacy’ not power, for power belong to South Sudan and legacy belong to Presidnt Kiiir Mayardit’s family which Adut must fight to rescue.
I therefore want us not to wrongly hung Ateny for using that Adage to convey his point. The point is both an encouragement and a statement of facts, for it is real that President Kiir’s good things for South Sudan were being marred by the mistakes of others, making his good part/deeds and contributions to almost be going into oblivion and contempt after him.
Adut Kiir’s arrival should be seen in the positive for what we want us a nation is not to kill legacies but to protect and promote them so that the country enjoys the legacy of Dr. John and the legacy of President Salva Kiir Mayardit.
Her few days in office has shown that Wun Weng aci Ben, visiting and seeing The Veterans Joseph Lago, Dr. Riak Machar and Community Leader of Twic are moves in fulfilment of her primary statements of reconciliation and forgiveness. Two significant principles for unity and togetherness, stability and progress.
Editorial note: The views in this article do not reflect the editorial stance of Juba Witness. The author is Ustaz Lewis Anei Madut-Kuendit, a Dinka scholar and former Governor of Warrap State. He is also the current Tonj Community in Juba.
