CEPO urges Kiir, Machar to address nation over unfolding defense ministry dispute  

JUBA, MARCH 4, 2023 (SUDANS POST) – South Sudan’s civil society watchdog, the Community Empowerment for Progress Organization (CEPO), is appealing to President Salva Kiir Mayardit and First Vice President Riek Machar to come out to address the nation over unfolding disagreement over the ministry of defense.

In a presidential decree readout on the state-own South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation (SSBC), Kiir dismissed Angelina Teny of the SPLM-IO from the ministry of defense and transferred the ministerial portfolio to his ruling SPLM faction. He also sacked the minister of interior and transferred the position from his faction to Machar’s.

In response, Machar’s press secretary Puok Both Baluang who is also the SPLM-IO Director of Information and Public Relations said the decision of the president to remove the defense ministry and transfer the portfolio to his party was not discussed and agreed upon by the parties concerned and termed it as a new cycle of peace violation.

In a statement, CEPO urged President Kiir and First Vice President Machar to come out to assure the citizens of their commitment to the implementation of the revitalized peace agreement.

“CEPO as one of the stakeholder signatories to the Revitalized Agreement on the Resolution of Conflict in the Republic of South Sudan is urging the leadership of the country to assure the citizens that recent decisions of relieving and swapping ministerial portfolios SPLM and SPLM-IO is in accordance with the spirit of the peace agreement where decision making is reached through consultations and consensus,” the CEPO statement reads in part.

Edmund Yakani, the Executive Director of CEPO the decision by Kiir violates the revitalized peace agreement if in fact there was no consensus reached with the SPLM-IO.

“Since the office of the first Vice President through the statement issued by the press Secretary Puok Both Baluang termed the decision of removal of the minister of defense and switching the ministry of defense from SPLM-IO to SPLM-IG as it is a unilateral decision not through consultations and consensus,” he said.

“This is a disturbing development, and it requires an urgent presidency meeting to agree on a message to assure the citizens that no frictions among the parties that may return the country back to violence as promised by the presidency during last festive season.

“The political leadership should ensure that implementation of this R-ARCSS pending task within the extended transitional period should not be use foe triggering further political understanding that may undermine or delay successful political transitioning from violence to peace.

“Having trust and confidence for implementing pending tasks of the R-ARCSS is essential and primarily responsibility of the presidency and the leaders in power.”