Preface to the Fourth Edition

This is the fourth edition of this book. The previous editions were in

2001, 2009 and 2011. The book has been in high demand in Sudan(s)

and East Africa but its exposure to readers beyond this geographical

area was limited due to the scope of publication.

This edition is prompted by two considerations. First, there is a

pressing need to get it to more readers across the globe. Second, the

current state of turmoil in the new state, South Sudan, has left many

pundits wondering as to what went wrong in a country that was full

of hope and promise when it was declared independent in July 2011.

This book does not claim to provide all the answers but it has clearly

shown that the state of political disorganization of the SPLM/A, the

ruling party, since its inception was a disaster in the waiting. Perhaps

the readers may want to refresh their memories by going through the

arguments put forward in that direction more than 16 years ago.

As always, I am grateful to all who advised me to republish the

book and also to those who helped me in any way to prepare it for

publication.

Dr Lam Akol,

Addis Ababa

August, 2017.