BREAKING | General Gatwech Dual appointed presidential advisor

JUBA – South Sudan President Salva Kiir Mayardit has this evening issued a Republic order appointing SPLA-IO military chief of general staff General Simon Gatwech Dual, who has been furious about the unreasonable delays in the implementation of the revitalized, as a presidential advisor for peace.

The appointment of the senior opposition commander was announced on the state-owned South Sudan Broadcasting Corporation (SSBC). The South Sudanese head of state cited powers granted to him by the Transitional Constitution of the Republic of South Sudan 2011, which was amended in 2015, and the revitalized peace agreement signed with SPLM-IO in 2018.

Kiir also appointed Dr. Costello Garang Ring Lual, the Chairman of South Sudan Patriotic Movement (SSPM), as presidential advisor on presidential affairs. Hussein Abdelbaggi, a senior member of the SSPM is serving as a vice-president in the six-person presidency representing South Sudan Opposition Alliance (SSOA) to which SSPM is a member.

It remains unclear if General Simon Gatwech Dual was appointed on the ticket of the SPLM-IO. His appointment also comes at a crucial time in the implementation of the revitalized peace agreement as defense minister Angelina Teny says the parties are almost done with the formation of the unified military command.

Last week, SPLA-IO spokesman General William Gatjiath Deng said he was visiting Juba upon invitation from the SPLM-IO chairman who is also South Sudan’s First Vice President Dr. Riek Machar Teny following disagreement over suspension of the SPLA-IO Director of Military Intelligence Service Dhiling Keah Chuol by General Gatwech.